Balance: Darkness and Light
by knyghtstar
Summary: There is a balance to the worlds that must be kept, even if that means bringing in some unusual help. Keepers of Darkness and Light to work in tandem so that the worlds can be kept safe.
1. Oh Shit!

Balance: Darkness and Light

AN ""= speaking, _italics= thoughts, _underline=creepy disembodied voice at beginning of game ,\ I do not own Kingdom Hearts 2 or anything involved except for the OC. Now that the disclaimer is out of the way, I just want to say hi everyone. This is my first fan fic on this site, and I hope you enjoy it. No flames please though constructive criticism is welcome. This fanfic is really for the enjoyment of just a friend and I, but if people like it well enough then I'll keep posting it. Enjoy. : )

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Chapter 1: Oh Shit!

I had known that fanfics were going to be my downfall but not like this. I had expected to become slightly obsessed, perhaps even creative. I never expected to go insane. Or get pulled into one and prove that all those stories that I had read online true. I had thought that I had gone insane when I had woken up. I knew I wasn't in my dorm room, where I had gone to sleep on my desk attempting to do my European Experience homework, so I figured that I was having a very vivid dream. That thought was dashed when I tripped and landed straight on my butt. So I wasn't dreaming and I had no way of knowing if I was actually insane or if this was real, so I decided to go with it and freak out later as I brushed off my dark blue jeans. As I walked around looking at the tan buildings I ended up in an open courtyard. And my jaw dropped. "Well I know where I am now." as my light blue eyes saw three very familiar people standing there. One, the obvious leader, had a grey sleeveless trench coat and a hat with the kanji for Ore on it. He was a blonde with a cocky ass attitude that always thought that he was best. Seifer was just the same as he had been in the game. The only girl in the group was the creepy, red eyed, silver haired, monosyllabic, usually silent Fuu. She had a blue sleeveless jacket and tan capris on. Then came the most annoying member, Rai, with his patented "ya'know" after EVERY line. Just like the game he had on his orange tank top and baggy sweatpants. Vivi was present too, while I knew it wasn't true some of my friends and I still agreed that he looked like a Heartless in a coat and hat.

As I tried to back out of the Sandlot, the now identified Twilight Town's Disciplinary Committee member Fuu looked over. "Outsider."

_Crap_. As the other three turned to look at me I sighed running a hand through my shoulder length dirty blonde hair, _Greaat_.

Seifer walked over and crossed his arms "Who're you?"

_Resist. Urge. To. Hit. "_Why should I tell you?"

The taller man's eyes narrowed down at my 5'4" stature and I crossed my arms and glared back in defiance as he said, "I may not know who you are but you better learn the rules fast, girlie." I stared at him with a look that blatantly said 'who the hell do you think you are'. Before I could respond to his statement though Roxas ran in and Seifer turned to him "Hey, chicken wuss." I was still giving Seifer death glares when my attention shifted to something white appearing.

Fuu looked at it and pointed asking "Who's that?" I watched as Vivi ran away, before rolling my eyes as the other people began to fight. I saw Roxas grab one of the struggle bats when one of the Dusks came and attacked me. As it spun around my legs I jumped up and away from it causing the thing to become confused. While it was looking around my right fist slammed into the side of its head. I blinked before staring at my fist because the Nobody that hadn't been affected by anyone else's attacks had been damaged by mine, it didn't help that Roxas and I were the only ones not frozen.

_What. The. Hell?_ Was the only thing that I could think at the moment before moving over to Roxas, side kicking one of the Nobodies away from him.

He looked back at me as we were now standing back to back saying "Thanks."

I nodded and glanced over my left shoulder at him "No prob."

We watched as the Dusks started to come closer, I heard Roxas mutter "Not good…"

I snorted and smirked slightly "Tell me about it."

He glanced back confused "Are you always this calm?"

I gave a small chuckle "Sometimes."

We both looked up as we heard a girl shout "Roxas! Use the Keyblade!"

_Namine._ As the Dusks continued to approach I suddenly felt myself begin to fall. As I looked around I didn't see Roxas nor did I see the normal platforms that were usually present at the beginning of the game. I narrowed my eyes as I saw a platform not with the princesses or Sora but one with the Nobodies symbol. I landed gently and looked around. As I did I sighed and said in a sing song voice "Ooh, creepy disembodied voice, where arrrre yoooou?" I could've sworn I felt something like a sigh before it began.

User of Darkness, Not overcome Don't be afraid

I felt my eye twitch as it began its cryptic speech, while different it was still annoying. I stopped for a second _Wait User of Darkness what does __**that**__ mean._

Giver of hope to those who are doomed, perhaps you can save those who are not true

I sighed slightly before looking around as three platforms popped up out the ground.

Choose wisely the path that you take I felt my eyes widen on the platforms instead of the sword, shield, and wand there were glowing orbs that looked slightly like very large materia. One was a brilliant white and it glowed with light, yet the one directly across from it was black and seemed to absorb that very same light. The one that caught my eye though was in the center, it was a mixture of light and dark, I smiled _the road to dawn. _I moved over to that one and touched it.

You wish for the power of balance. 

_Balance what kind of power is that _

the gift to see clearly and accept all, the curse to straddle the edge of light and dark.

_Oh, that kind._

I nodded, which will you give up? I moved over to the orb of darkness, touching it waiting for the voice to start up again, the ultimate power with great courage will you be able to protect those around you though at the cost of possibly losing yourself. 

_Ookaay. Next_. I moved over to the orb of light.

The power to do the ultimate good will you be able to sacrifice yourself at the cost of being blinded I looked back at the orb of darkness before nodding and giving up the light orb. You have chosen the power of balance and given up the power of light. I blinked and looked around in the sudden light; Seifer was standing over Roxas posing for a camera.

_Well I guess I get to skip a few parts. _I walked forward grabbing the lens of the camera effectively covering it as Fuu was taking a picture.

"Hey, that's Seifer's ya'know."

I looked over at Rai sideways; while Fuu was giving me death glares "I really don't care." I returned my attention back to Seifer who was still standing over Roxas, glaring death at me "Get off him or I will move you."

He smirked at my threat asking "You really think you can little girl?"

I gave a cheeky smirk before saying "Damn straight I can." He blinked in surprise before smirking as Roxas ran after Hayner who had left in a huff. I walked past Seifer when he grabbed my arm, he opened his mouth to say something when I cut him off, voice low and dangerous "Move it or lose it kid. I ain't in the mood to teach you how to fight." I shook him off and followed the group out of the Sandlot.

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I walked over to the Usual Spot to see Hayner leave. Roxas followed him out a few seconds later but the other boy was long gone. Roxas sighed and glanced over at me "Hey thanks for the help today…um?"

I smiled "Bran. Call me Ghost."

"Ghost?"

My smile turned into a grin "Yep. I tend to sneak up on people when they least expect it so my friends nicknamed me Ghost."

He blinked before shrugging off the strange nickname and asked, "Ok. Do you know what was going on back there?" I blinked and shrugged with a slight shake of my head; he sighed and looked at the ground.

I watched him for a moment, I really did know what was going on but it didn't feel right to tell him, my instincts were screaming that he wasn't ready to know yet. I placed my right hand on his left shoulder saying "I'm sure that everything will clear up eventually, just be patient."

He looked up at me, clear blue eyes sad before he nodded saying "Yeah, I guess you're right. I'll see you tomorrow right, maybe we can figure out some of this after the tournament."

I made a confused face and asked "Tournament?"

He nodded explaining "The Struggle Tournament, its tomorrow in the Sandlot."

I smiled "Oh Ok, I'll see ya there." I watched as he walked off dejectedly before turning around and heading up to one of the buildings that over looked the Sandlot. I got to the highest building that I could find and watched as the sun set, lost in my own thoughts. The main question plaguing my mind was HOW did I get her and now that I am what am I going to do about it. _I wonder if anyone else got sucked into this mess._ I laid down and stared at the stars in silent thought until I fell asleep.


	2. Enter the pyro

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A/N: Hi again people. I'm trying a new format to see if it would allow for easier reading, we'll see how this one goes; still probably not correct grammatically though.

""= speaking, _italics= thoughts, _proper grammar shall probably not be followed I do not own Kingdom Hearts 2 or anything involved except for myself, Hey I think I've seen this before.

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Chapter 2: Enter the Pyro

By the time I woke up it was morning and the sun was shining. I ran a hand through my hair, getting rid of the knots. I glanced down, while adjusting my black hoodie over my dark blue T-shirt, and saw that people were beginning to gather for the tournament. Roxas was there looking around, glancing at Hayner every once in a while, I jumped and landed low to the ground with a quiet thump before heading over to talk to Roxas. "You okay?" The blonde spun around, as I had ended up behind him, with a surprised look on his face. I felt my mouth twitch into a smile before concern replaced the look.

"How did you get there?!" He placed a hand over his heart and tried to take calming breaths, I smiled again

"You have now just experienced why my friends call me Ghost." My expression fell slightly as I crossed my arms and looked down at him "But back to the point, you okay?"

He blinked "Yeah. I'm fine."

_Liar_ I gave a small smile, shoving my hands into my hoodie's pockets and shrugging slightly "Alright. If you're sure. Good luck with this than." He smiled slightly before turning around and heading over to the judge, where Hayner, Seifer, and Vivi were standing. I barely listened as the announcer went over the stuff and was looking around. I looked up to the top of the buildings before looking back at the arena smirking. _So that's where you've been hiding is it Axel. You better be glad that no one in this digital town is smart enough to look up. _I watched the Struggle tournament with boredom while I waited for the Nobodies to make an appearance.

I glanced around for a moment when everyone stopped cheering, _here it comes, _Vivi than changed into a Dusk as Roxas looked at it frustrated "Again." I jumped onto the platform that was the arena just as Roxas' struggle bat turned into a Keyblade. "Again..." He said in a slightly quieter voice.

I pulled my hands out of my hoodie pockets getting ready for a fight "Of course again there's always an again, persistent buggers." He looked over at me and I smirked back, before returning my attention to the now attacking Dusks. It wasn't long before we had beaten all of the Dusks and heard clapping.

A slender man with a black trench coat hoodie stood there clapping "Roxas. Alright. Fight, fight, fight."

_I soo want one of those coats, they are so COOL!_

The hooded man began to walk closer "You really don't remember? It's me. You know, Axel." As he told us his name he removed his hood to reveal bright red spiky hair and vibrant green eyes with tattoos under them. I crossed my arms over my chest keeping my face blank. The red head glanced over at me and I raised an eyebrow at him.

Roxas was still staring at him confused "Axel?"

The taller man turned back to the blonde "Talk about blank with a capital B; man oh man even the Dusks aren't gonna crack this one." Axel summoned his chakrams out of fire and caught them.

My eyes narrowed slightly as Roxas' demanded "Wait a sec; tell me what's going on!"

Axel straightened slightly and looked around "This town is his creation, right? Which means we don't have time for a Q&A. You're coming with me conscious or not. Then you'll hear the story." I moved over to the edge of the arena and jumped to the ground before placing a hand on my hip. Axel glanced over at me again, smirking slightly. As Axel once again prepared to fight it seemed like something flew around the arena causing, me to back up slightly in surprise, and Axel to straighten up again. "Uh-oh."

I sighed "You said it."His head snapped over to me in confusion but I was looking over at Roxas as he was growing increasingly frustrated.

The blonde threw the Keyblade down, sending it spinning a few feet away as he yelled "What's going ON?!" I blinked as the Keyblade flashed back into Roxas' hand and he stared at it confusion.

Axel gave a slight sigh "Number XIII. Roxas. The Keyblade's chosen one." The taller man crouched down slightly getting ready to fight _one does have to wonder how many interruptions are going to occur before they actually throw down._

"Okay, fine! You asked for it!"

Axel smirked "That's more like it!" I sighed as I watched the two of them fight. I knew that Axel was going easy on the kid and basically let Roxas win, so I watched until Axel jumped back with a smile. "Not bad, Roxas." A swirl of data came to one spot in the arena DiZ formed, as my eyes widened and I moved over to Roxas pulling him back slightly, Axel jumped back and said "So it was you." as he threw his burning chakrams at DiZ to no affect causing them to go straight back to Axel. I leaned back slightly as the whizzed by my face blowing my hair slightly, Axel caught them easily.

DiZ then turned to Roxas and said "Roxas, this man speaks nonsense!"

I looked back at Axel who said with an almost unnoticeable amount of desperation "Roxas, don't let him deceive you!" I felt my eye twitch as they both began calling Roxas' name.

_Don't they ever SHUT UP! _

Apparently I wasn't the only one that they had gotten on the nerves of because Roxas placed his hands over his ears and began to say "Hayner… Pence…. Olette… Bran." I jumped back off of the platform turning to stare at him in astonishment

_Did he just call my name with the group? I just met him yesterday! _There was a slight flash, before the cheering started up again. I looked back to the arena in time to see Vivi fall down and a very confused announcer make the call that Roxas had won. I smiled and slipped back into the crowd, vanishing from view and leaving the Sandlot. I knew that Roxas would win against Setzer, hopefully, and I wanted to look around a little bit more before the really odd stuff started to happen around town. I looked back up to the tops of the buildings and saw a flash of red and black that quickly vanished from sight. I smiled slightly before continuing down the street. _If Axel wanted to do something he would do it. I need to watch out for DiZ and Riku. I can't predict what they'll do now that they know I'm here. _I stopped and placed a hand on my hip with a sigh, _what to do, what to do. _

"You know for the odd ball in this world you would think that you would want to stay in the crowd." I smiled slightly at the cocky voice before turning around with an amused smirk.

"Ahh, so I'm the odd ball in this world, now what could you possibly mean by that?"

He smirked slightly saying "Exactly what it sounds like. You're the only one here other than Roxas that isn't affected by DiZ's time freezing."

I crossed my arms and sighed "Are you here only to annoy me or are you here for some better purpose?"

His eyes widened at that "No need to get snippy at me babe…"

I cut him off before he could get any further "First off the name's not babe so don't call me it."

He raised an eyebrow "Than what is it?"

I smiled slightly, lightly tapping the side of my head "Bran or Ghost. Got it memorized?" His mouth dropped open in astonishment as I walked past giving a slight wave and saying "See ya around Axel." He turned around as I left and watched as I made my way back to the Sandlot. His eyes filled with confusion for a moment as he felt the darkness try to pull him towards the girl he had just met. There was something about her that he felt like he could trust. She was definitely a curiosity.


	3. The meeting of the sarcastics

A/N: Hey! Alright on to the next chapter but because this one is so short this is now a three part special. Special shout out to xFakeASmilex as my first reviewer. As for the formatting thing for the last chapter…it didn't work. Oh well. I noticed actually after I posted it, Ghost said her name was Michelle instead of Bran. Well her name is Bran, Michelle was a filler name I was using before I could find a better one and I missed one while changing it out before. I apologize if this caused any confusion.

Disclaimer: No, I just…no, I own nothing other than the OC and even that could be iffy sometimes.

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Chapter 3: The meeting of the sarcastics

I watched as Roxas got the trophy and clapped, smiling and giving a thumbs up when he found me in the crowd, his smile growing wider. I moved back to the top of the building where I had stayed last night and blinked when I saw a slender man in a black coat. A strand of red hair poked out from under the hood and I gave a silent sigh, placing a hand on my hip before saying "Please tell me you're here to do more than just to annoy me Axel." The taller man jumped and turned around, flames dancing on one of his hands. I quickly put my hands up backing up slightly. I watched as the flames extinguished themselves placing my hands back at my sides before moving over to sit on the ledge, close to Axel. I smiled and looked up at him amused "I'm not gonna hit you or anything. So relax already." Axel blinked before standing next to me looking down, as I looked back at Twilight Town, a slight wind blowing my hair. I felt his gaze on me and without even looking up asked "Penny for your thoughts?"

His eyes narrowed slightly as he asked "How did you do that?"

I looked up at him in confusion asking "Do, what?"

"Sneak up on me?"

I smiled as I explained "It's a gift, always been able to do it, even to those who normally are really observant." I turned back to the town as he seemed to be satisfied with the answer. He sat down next to me his eyes narrowing slightly as he felt the same pull from the darkness that he had felt before grow stronger with the proximity, pulling off his hood. I leaned back placing my arms behind my head as I laid down, I glanced sideways at the red head, _what is he thinking?_

He looked down at me asking "What?"

I blinked and shook my head saying "Nothing, nothing."

He "humped" a reply and turned back to the town with narrowed eyes before saying "You know you never answered my question."

I looked over at him, before pushing myself up into a sitting position one leg stretched out before me asking "What question would that be?"

He looked over at me explaining "Why are you different than the rest of the town's people?"

I blinked and said "You never asked that."

His eye twitched in annoyance and he exclaimed "Would you just answer the question?!"

I tilted my head back before simply stating "Perhaps because I'm not from this world."

He blinked a few times at the straight forward answer before asking "How'd you get in then?"

I just shrugged and laid back down, looking up at the sky muttering "Who knows." I laid there for a few minutes before I looked over at him saying "Hey I got a question."

He sighed annoyed and asked "What?"

_I already know the answer but I want him to say It just for confirmation_ "What's with you and Roxas?"

His eyes narrowed slightly before answering "He's… an old friend."

I blinked and said "Ah. I see." I closed my eyes and allowed myself to drift off into sleep.

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A/N: Now go to the next chapter. I apologize IMMENSLY for the crap chap.


	4. Work is BORING

A/N: The second of a three part special. Sorry this one is so short but hey what can you do some days are just plain boring. I promise that the chapters get longer after this.

I do not own Kingdom Hearts 2 or anything involved except for Bran. Haven't you guys figured that out yet?

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Chapter 4: Work is BORING

I woke up when the sun hit my face, I groaned slightly and rolled over, I heard a slight chuckle and opened my eyes to see a face and bright red hair leaning over me. My arm swung up and Axel dodged quickly exclaiming "What the hell was that for?!"

I sighed, and began running my hand through my hair to get rid of the knots, saying "One I am not a morning person and two you startled me. What did you expect me to do?!"

"Certainly not hit me!" I smiled slightly at his response, before standing and stretching my arms over my head. "Nice."

I glanced over at him with narrowed eyes "Keep looking and I'll kick you off this roof." He chuckled nervously as I lowered my arms, continuing in an easier tone "I'm surprised you didn't take off after the fight with Roxas yesterday. Why stick around?"

He blinked and crossed his arms looking down at the town saying "Never know when an opportunity might happen that I can get him back." I smiled _that's a Jack Sparrow-ism if I ever heard one_ "You're lucky."

I looked over at him after he muttered that, blinking rapidly and asked "Lucky? How?"

He turned and shook his head saying "It's nothing."

I tilted my head and smiled saying "Personally I think you're lucky too."

He snorted before asking "How so?"

My smile turned into a full blown grin before replying "Lucky that the people of this town are too damn stupid to look up." He blinked before he started to laugh. My eyes softened slightly before I turned around and jumped off the roof, yelling back up to him "You're also lucky that DiZ hasn't found you yet so I'd keep a low profile today if I were you." I walked off to go find some breakfast and perhaps look onto the message boards about some jobs to make some easy munny. _I'm gonna need munny in the future, might as well get some now._ I worked my way through the afternoon, mostly delivering mail around the town. I glanced up slightly as I felt more than saw the encroachment of night. I quickly finished my last round and got my payment, heading off to find some dinner. By the time I got back to the building that I normally stayed on, it was dark already. I glanced around slightly noting that Axel wasn't there before settling down on the edge of the building one leg hanging off of the edge the other pressed up against my chest, arms wrapped around that leg. I heard a slight warping sound from behind before footsteps came toward me. I gave a small smile, and a slight wave of my hand as the red head sat down next to me as I asked "So what were you doing all day while I was working?"

I smiled over at Axel who shrugged and stated "Work."

I blinked once before saying "Ah. I see." He raised an eyebrow at me but I didn't continue as I looked away. _This is the last day that Roxas had before rejoining Sora. Poor guy, I feel kind of bad for him._

Axel must have noticed something because he asked "What?"

I looked up at him startled for a moment before asking "Huh?"

His eyes narrowed slightly before he continued "You looked sad. I was wondering why."

I blinked and gave a small smile before saying "It's nothing."

He shrugged "If you say so." I rolled my eyes at him with a smile before laying down, my arms behind my head, crossing my legs and closing my eyes in the process. He looked down at me in curiosity as I drifted off to sleep; he shook his head and looked up at the stars wondering what he was doing with a girl that probably didn't even know what a Nobody was.

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A/N: Go to the next chapter for better reading…hopefully. That's all up to you guys if it's actually any better.


	5. Bye Roxas

A/N: The last of this three part special. I got all these chapters out because I go on a break and wouldn't be able to update until next week if I kept with my weekly schedule and I put up so many as a way of apologizing for the crappiness of the last two chapters. Enjoy

Disclaimer: I wish I owned everything. I only own Bran. That's it nothing more.

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Chapter 5: Bye Roxas

I once again woke up to the stupid sun and again Axel was there to bug me but this time I didn't try to pummel him like I had yesterday. It helped that he kept far out of reach when I woke up. I sighed, _now here is the F-ing weird day. _I looked over at Axel who was disappearing into a portal; he gave a slight wave when he noticed I was watching him before stepping through. I ran through the alleyways to the Usual Spot quickly, when I got to the top of the building that over looked the Usual Spot I was forced back because of a barrier that surrounded the area. I gave a quiet growl of frustration, placing a hand on the barrier. I blinked as my hand began to glow slightly and slipped through the shield around the place. I gasped and pulled back quickly, staring at my hand for a moment before placing it back onto the barrier where it began to glow again, it felt warm as I slipped through the barrier and looked down at Roxas' predicament. I jumped down, landing on a Nobody that was about to attack Roxas from behind. The blonde spun around, blinking in confusion when he saw me. I gave a two finger salute before jerking my leg into one of the other Nobodies causing it to disappear.

Axel soon showed up stepping out of the portal he glanced over at me surprise flickering over his face, while I leaned against a wall, before turning to Roxas saying "Look at what it's come too. I've been given these icky orders to destroy you… if you refuse to come back with me."

Roxas straightened up slightly and hesitantly said "We're… best friends, right?"

Axel scratched the back of his head saying "Sure…but I'm not getting turned into a Dusk for…" His face brightened in excitement "…Wait a sec! You remember now?!"

Still hesitant Roxas answered "Y…eah."

Axel's arm came down as he said "Great! But, you know, gotta make sure and all. So, umm…What's our boss's name?" I watched as Roxas didn't answer and Axel's face dropped before sighing sadly. "Can't believe this…" The Dusks started to attack Roxas again and I jumped into the fray to help the blonde, his stick turning into a Keyblade in a swirl of data. I ducked as the last of the Dusks tried to swipe off my head, my fist slamming into its gut making it vanish. Axel's arm swung up but froze; I stared at him for a moment before straightening up.

Roxas relaxed a moment after I did, my head looking around as DiZ's voice seemed to come out of nowhere ordering "Roxas, to the mansion! The time has come! Girl! You come with him!" 

_Oh screw you, DiZ!_ I moved over to where Axel was standing, a barrier in the way. I placed a hand on it for a moment, ignoring Roxas. I turned around quickly, taking my hand away from the barrier where it had started to glow saying "Roxas." He looked at me for a moment as I stared back before commenting "You better get going."

He blinked before his face to a look of confusion and concern asking "What about you?"

I smiled and jerked a thumb back to where Axel was standing frozen saying "I'm gonna slow him down; hopefully give you some time to find your answers." He nodded slightly, the concern never leaving his face. Noticing this I sighed and walked over to him placing a hand on his shoulder and said "I'll be alright, I can take care of myself, but I need you to trust me on this."

He nodded again and hesitated slightly before turning around, yelling a "Thanks!" over his shoulder as he ran off to the mansion. Once he was out of sight I walked back to the barrier where Axel was still frozen, placing a hand lightly on it.

_I don't want to go through it this time, I want it gone._ I closed my eyes and imagined the barrier around him shattering and could feel the power building up in my hand. I opened my eyes and looked down to where my hand was, now covered in an aura of darkness that had streaks of light in it. I pushed my palm flat against the barrier causing it to shatter around me like glass. Axel was still frozen but as soon as I placed a hand on the arm that looked like it was going to throw a chakram he started to move again, slowly lowering his arm to his sides, banishing the intricate weapons his expression heartbreaking. "The Roxas I know is long gone. Fine I see how it is…"

I opened my mouth slightly, a sad look on my face and placed a hand on Axel's arm saying "Axel, memories…. They take time, and sometimes they only come in pieces, give him a chance."

He glanced down at me before sighing and shaking his head saying "There's nothing I can do now but follow my orders." I gave a sad sigh before turning away and starting to walk in the direction that Roxas had gone. "Where are you going?"

I glanced back at the red head answering "I'm getting out of this digital world and the only way that I can think of doing that is in the mansion, unless you're volunteering to take me out."

The red head blinked and scratched the back of his head for a moment, while I continued walking before saying "Come on."

I turned around surprise flickering on my face as I asked "Huh?"

He grabbed my arm and gave a gentle tug explaining "I'll take you to the other Twilight Town before I go confront Roxas."

I smiled up at him and said "Thanks, Axel."

"Uh-huh." I chuckled slightly at his answer, before he summoned a portal and we walked through. I gave a small shudder as we moved through it; I could feel the darkness pulling at me, Axel's hand tightening on my arm as he felt the tremor.

We soon reached the other side, where it looked exactly the same, Axel let go of my arm and I turned towards him before he stepped back through saying "Be careful and don't do anything too stupid. 'Kay?"

He smiled sadly and gave a small laugh saying "Right." With that he stepped through the portal with it disappearing behind him.

I gave a slight smile staring at the spot where the portal had been a few seconds before saying "Number VIII. Axel. Flurry of the Dancing Flames. Who would've thought that I would get along with you so well?" I turned towards the Sandlot and began to walk slowly to the mansion, avoiding Seifer and his gang along the way. As I walked through the basement of the mansion, I smiled as I heard laughter coming out of the cryo-room. I leaned against the open door as they jumped around in excitement. My smile broadened as I said "Glad to see you're all up and about but what do you say we leave the creepy mansion? Hm?" All of them jumped and spun towards me as I laughed at their surprised expressions.

Donald waved his wand at me exclaiming "Who are you?!"

I pushed back a strand of dirty blonde hair behind my ear as I said "The name's Bran or Ghost. Whichever one you prefer."

Sora looked at me confused asking "Ghost?"

I gave a mischievous grin as I said "Yep. I have the tendency to sneak up on people, therefore they call me Ghost."

As I watched the brunette Goofy asked me, "Well what're you doin' here, Ghost?"

I gave a small smile while amusement twinkled in my blue orbs as I turned to Goofy answering "Probably, something similar to what you guys are doing."

Donald gave an angry quack exclaiming "Can't you just give a straight answer?"

I blinked, restraining a smile saying "No." The duck gave a frustrated sigh. I tilted my head curiously and asked "What about you guys? What are your names?"

Sora smiled before answering pointing at each person as he gave their name "That's Donald and Goofy. I'm Sora."

I gave another smile and nodded before watching as Jiminy Cricket jumped down to the ground, stretching and saying "That was some nap."

Sora stared at Jiminy confusedly asking, "You mean we were asleep?"

I rolled my eyes _No Sora, you were on a roller coaster, YES you were asleep! You… idiot._

Jiminy scratched the back of his head, still looking half asleep as it was, saying "I guess we musta been, or I don't think we'd be so drowsy…"

Goofy looked down at the little cricket and asked "When do you think we went to sleep?"

Sora and Donald both crossed their arms as Donald went "Uhh…"

Goofy looked over at me curiously and asked "Do you have any idea, Ghost?" I shrugged and shook my head at the dog…thing.

Sora tilted his head back and began to recount what he could remember "Let's see…we defeated Ansem."

Goofy nodded and said "Yep."

Sora than continued "… restored peace to the world… found Kairi… Oh yeah, and then we went to look for Riku. I think that's right so far."

Donald sounded frustrated as he asked "Then, what?"

As no one could answer, right away Goofy looked down to Jiminy asking "What does your Journal say, Jiminy?" The cricket then whipped the book out of nowhere and opened it; quickly scanning through the pages he discovered a problem.

"Gee, there's only one sentence… 'Thank Namine'…hm I wonder who that is?" All three of the guys shook their heads as I watched from the doorway.

Donald huffed saying "Some Journal that is."

Jiminy back up slightly from embarrassment before quickly saying "We…Well, what do ya say we find out where we are!"

My eyes narrowed slightly before I spoke up again "Didn't I say something like that about five minutes ago?"

Donald opened his mouth to say something but Sora cut him off "What's this world called?"

I waved a hand in a follow me gesture and began to lead them through the mansion back up to the outside explaining "It's called Twilight Town, at the moment you're in a supposedly 'haunted' mansion on the edge of town." I pushed open the front door allowing a stream of light to enter into the mansion I looked back at the trio, smiling and saying "Once you're ready to go into the main town, tell me, I'll lead ya there." The three of them nodded, Sora running off to explore the house and gather chests. I went and sat against one of the walls and watched as Donald and Goofy wandered the gardens. Sora soon returned from his exploring and waved over to the other two. They gathered around me as I stood up, brushing my jeans off asking "Ready?" They nodded, Sora with a giant grin, I smirked slightly before heading off towards the forest saying "Well than let's go." We were attacked by one or two Dusks but nothing major. I got my jeans ripped when one of the Dusk's claws got caught when I kicked it and one of the sleeves of my hoodie was cut up pretty badly but that was all. As soon as we entered into the town, I allowed Sora to take over the leading as he probably wanted to explore the town.

* * *

Eventually, we did end up going to the Usual Spot. Just before we entered into it Sora looked around slightly saying "You know, I think I've been to this town."

Donald looked up at the brunette boy and asked "Really?"

Sora crossed his arms and tilted his head as he tried to remember saying "Hmm… Guess I must've imagined it." He uncrossed his arms and continued in, I had stopped behind him, eyes sad _Roxas,_ my head jerked up in surprise when I heard Sora call "Ghost! You coming?!"

I started walking again yelling back "Yeah, I'm coming." I sighed tiredly, glancing back at the Sandlot buildings, before walking into the Usual Spot, forcing my face back into a neutral expression. As we entered the room we spotted Hayner, Pence, and Olette laying around bored. I let the guys move ahead of me, as I leaned against the wall near the door.

Hayner was the first to speak up as if looking for a fight "What do you want?!"

Sora placed his hands up as if saying 'we come in peace', backing up slightly and placing a hand behind his head saying "Uh, nothing. Just wondering what was back here."

Hayner leaned forward, keeping the tough guy attitude going while I gave a small sigh as he said "Now you know. This is our spot."

Sora looked over as Pence walked forward looking at the brunette carefully all the while going "Ummm..." Sora turned to him clearly curious to what the other boy wanted "What?"

Pence straightened up, as Hayner and Olette walked over to the group asking "You're new around here, right? I'm Pence." He pointed a thumb at himself as he gave his self-introduction.

Hayner moved forward stopping for a moment to introduce himself "Hayner. Nice to meet you, but we got stuff to do, so catch ya later." He gave a dismissive wave before walking past Sora. As he walked past me, he gave a slight glare to which I only raised an eyebrow in challenge but the younger boy went through the door quickly.

The other two watched him leave before Olette moved forward saying "My name's Olette. Hey, did you finish the summer homework, yet? Independent studies are the worst, huh?"

Sora's eyes widened in surprise and he exclaimed "Homework?!" He turned to look at Goofy and Donald, who just shook their heads. He looked over towards the door where I was leaning and I just shrugged.

As Sora turned around Pence asked "Hey, what're your names?"

Goofy answered cutting in before Sora could even open his mouth, gesturing towards the appropriate people "Oh, Sorry. We're Sora, Donald, Ghost, and Goofy."

I smiled slightly and nodded as Sora said "Hey there."

Pence and Olette looked at each other and my eyes narrowed slightly as Olette turned back saying "Sora, Donald, Goofy, we just met someone who was looking for you."

Pence took over from there "He sure seemed in a hurry." I slumped slightly in shock as the boy began to mime pulling a hood over his head while saying "He had a black hood on so I couldn't see his face, but…" I slapped a palm to my forehead as he waved two large circles on top of his head "… he had these big round ears." The three crossed their arms and began to try and puzzle out who this could possibly be as I tried not to groan out of frustration at their stupidity.

_OH. MY. GOD. Come on guys who the heck do you know that has BIG ROUND EARS and is currently MISSING! _

All three of them seemed to get it at the same time and turned toward Donald as he yelled "The King!"

Sora nodded to the two of them before turning to Pence and Olette and asked "Where'd ya see him?"

Pence answered like it was the most obvious thing around "At the station."

Sora nodded and said "The Station! Thanks!"

Olette deciding that the conversation was done said "Well, we'd better get back to that assignment."

She left the room with Pence saying "Later!" and running off to follow her.

The four of us watched them leave before Donald turned back to Sora excitedly saying "Oh boy! The king's trying to find us!"

Sora smiled and said "Yeah, let's get to the station!" The other two nodded before turning to me, I blinked in confusion before Sora asked "Ghost, would you lead us to the Station?"

I smiled and nodded saying "Yeah, sure. Follow me."


	6. Off to the funky tower

Hi again. This story actually is gaining popularity, which has actually shocked me enough into doing a happy dance. Shout out to the newest reviewer though to Blackoutpanther, as well as the newest add purplekitsune-chan. The review and the adds are always appreciated. So thank you very much on to the disclaimer and the story. I know I ended in an odd part the last time but the last chapter would have been about 12 pages long and I figured that might be a little excessive.

I do not own Kingdom Hearts 2 or anything involved except for Bran. Help from and . If I had owned these Axel and Demy wouldn't have died.

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Chapter 6: Off to the funky tower

Recap: heading to Station

I walked out of the Usual Spot and glanced over to the Sandlot before smiling and heading the opposite way _I am soo going to by-pass you Seifer. Arrogant jerk. _We entered into the Station courtyard fairly quickly and were soon surrounded by Dusks. _Shit! There's a lot of them this time._ Sora noticed something was off about them but summoned his Keybalde as I raised my fists preparing for a fight. The fight took FOREVER; every time one of us would defeat one two more would replace it. Sora and the guys were quickly getting tired, even I was feeling the strain and I hadn't been in Cryo for the past year. All four of us were back to back as more appeared and I began to swear under my breath making sure that the other three couldn't hear my rant. Goofy and Donald were the first to drop to the ground from sheer exhaustion, with Sora soon to follow, my breathing was coming hard and I knew that I wasn't going to last much longer. _Dammit! Mickey where the HELL are you?! _I felt my left knee give out for a second but a second was all the Nobodies needed to charge at Sora and I. I crossed my arms in front of myself and grunted as the thing hit me but it disappeared after a second in a flash of light as Mickey destroyed it as well as the rest of them.

I looked over as I heard a thump and Donald saying "Your Majesty?" I sighed in annoyance as I saw that both Donald and Goofy were on top of Sora.

Mickey raised a hand to his mouth and went "Shh! You four gotta board the train and leave town! The train knows the way."

I reached over and grabbed the back of Donald's and Goofy's shirts and yanked them off of Sora, ignoring Donald's protests saying "He can't breathe you guys."

Sora grunted slightly as he sat up and Mickey held out a pouch to Sora and said "Here"

As soon as Sora took it Mickey ran off towards Market Street causing Donald to yell out in surprise "Your Majesty…"

The duck ran after him a few steps before stopping while Sora watched confused asking "The King…Was that really him?"

Goofy was still staring to where his monarch had run off too, answering "It coulda been… Yep I know it was!"

I rolled my eyes at Donald's over exaggerated excitement "Now we know he's Okay!"

Sora crossed his arms and looked down at the ground asking "The King was locked in the Realm of Darkness, right?"

Goofy nodded saying "Uh-huh."

Sora tilted his head having become even more confused saying, "But we just saw him…"

Donald grinned and nodded "Yep."

_Come on Sora put all the pieces together._

Sora's face flashed enlightenment and he exclaimed "And if the King is here, that means Riku's here!"

Donald nodded saying "He's gotta be!"

Sora smiled before saying "Well, I'm gonna go look for Riku. Then he and I can go back to the islands together. Kairi's there waiting for us! What are you two gonna do?" Goofy and Donald gave a frustrated sound and made a couple of faces that I tried to restrain a grin in response too.

Goofy looking kind of sad, said "Gawrsh, Sora. Do ya have to ask?"

Sora began to laugh and I lost it, joining him to Donald's indignation "Hey! What's so funny?!"

I calmed down fighting giggles that tried to escape, as Sora answered, pointing at the two of them, "Your face!" The two of them looked at each other before they began to laugh along with Sora. The brunette calmed down saying "What do ya say, guys? Let's stick together for one more journey." The other two in the group nodded before all three turned to me. I blinked as Sora asked "What about you Ghost? What're you gonna do?"

I smiled and said "Didn't you hear your King he said 'the four of you'. This means that you guys are stuck with me for a little longer."

The three smiled and nodded as Goofy said "Well, welcome to the team, Ghost!"

I walked forward so that I was in the circle with the other three before Sora asked placing his hands behind his head asking "To… where again?"

I shook my head _this is the person who is going to save all the worlds. We're doomed. _

Goofy was the one who answered as I tried to keep myself from saying something sarcastic to the overly naïve boy "We hafta board the train!"

Sora lowered his arms, while pointing one of them at Goofy saying "Oh yeah." Donald gave a sigh obviously thinking something along the same lines that I was. Sora waved a follow me saying "Come on." before running into the station.

I followed a bit slower walking, instead of running knowing that they would be delayed momentarily. "Hey!"

I looked back to see Hayner, Pence, and Olette waving at me, I stopped and turned around saying "Come on the rest of the guys are inside."

They nodded as we began to walk inside, Hayner spotted Sora and yelled "Wait up!" The other three ran forward to catch up to the small group, coming to a quick stop. I ignored them and went over to the stairs, sitting down and watching them. I looked over my shoulder as a bell rang.

Olette said "You should hurry and get your tickets."

Sora gave a small nod while saying "Right." I sighed and stood up as the brunette walked over to the ticket stand and dug into his pocket for the munny pouch. As he brought out the bright orange pouch Olette gasped.

Donald looked up at the girl and asked "What is it?" She reached into her own back pocket pulling out the same pouch.

I blinked _Riku… didn't DiZ tell you to delete the pouch, not give it to Mickey._ I smiled slightly; luckily it wasn't noticed as the rest of the people were staring at the pouch.

Goofy was the first to state the obvious "They're the same."

Sora glanced down at the one he was holding before leaning towards the counter asking "Four tickets, please!" The teller handed the boy the tickets before he turned to walk up the stairs, he stopped staring up at them. I turned around to look down at him as I was already half way up them. I tilted my head curiously as Hayner started to walk past Sora as he said "I can't help feeling like we won't see this town again…"

I blinked as my expression softened slightly; Donald looked up at the boy curiously asking "Why not?"

Goofy said "You're thinkin too much."

Sora gave a slight smile while looking back at the other two saying "Yeah, you're right!" I turned and continued my way up the stairs pausing momentarily to kick a nearby chest that spat a potion out at me, which I caught and shoved into a pocket.

I looked over my shoulder as Sora came level with me as I said "Make sure you're ready to go and met us by the train; just don't take too long you wouldn't want to miss it." He nodded enthusiastically with a grin and ran off to get the other chests. I sighed and shook my head _that boy is obsessed with chests_ I smiled _not that I should be one to talk when I played I was obsessed with chests too._ I went over to stand by the purple and yellow train and waited for Sora to finish up with his running around. As we saw he was headed towards us Goofy and Donald waited with me by the entrance of the train.

As soon as Sora stopped in front of us he said "Okay let's go!" We nodded and I was the first to head onto the train waving a good-bye to Hayner, Pence, and Olette. I heard Sora say bye but I went further into the train and sat on one of the chairs, closing my eyes and crossing my arms. I opened one as I heard Goofy and Donald enter but closed it again until I felt the train start to move. I opened my eyes to see Goofy and Donald staring out the windows from the seats across from me and Sora leaning against the door looking out that window. I stretched out taking up the seat that I was on and relaxed allowing my eyes to close. I had just about dozed off when I heard Sora say "You know…" I kept my eyes closed but stayed awake as I heard a soft thump that was Donald sitting down. Sora continued "I'm sad." I sat up, opening my eyes and propping my chin against my hand, my elbow on my knee, one leg off of the seat, watching Sora silently.

Donald looked down before saying comfortingly "We'll be back."

Goofy nodded saying with a smile "Yeah. We can visit with Hayner and those guys again." Donald nodded in his agreement; Sora looked over at me as I gave comforting smile and nodded. Sora gave a small smile and nodded as the outside suddenly flashed with light, we all turned to look out the windows. I stared out the window as what looked like the northern lights hung outside of it. I laid down and closed my eyes again not knowing how long we were going to be on the train. I had been asleep for about half an hour when the train stopped. I blinked and stood up stretching. The four of us walked outside and looked around. As we walked away Sora stopped and I turned back to him as we watched the train vanish.

My face took on the expression of 'figures' and Sora gave a nervous laugh before saying "There goes our ride…"

I sighed before saying "Come on Sora, staring at the tracks isn't going to make the train magically re-appear." He turned towards me a slightly embarrassed look on his face before noticing that I too was staring at the tracks but with a look of annoyance. I looked up at Sora as he drew level with me and sighed before turning and heading over to where Goofy and Donald were waiting for us. I felt my eye twitch as we spotted Pete blocking the doorway to the tower. As the guys were dealing with him I wandered around kicking chests and getting whatever they had held inside of them. _Oh yes, Bran, Sora is the one obsessed with chests and here you are gathering them._ I sighed slightly before grunting when I felt something hit my back _uhg… that's gonna leave a bruise._ Something ripped and I looked down at my right arm which was now bear of a hoodie sleeve. I looked down at the shadow that was now holding onto what was left of my hoodie sleeve. My eye twitched again in annoyance as I kicked the thing like a football, sending it flying into Pete, who yelped. I moved over to where Sora was killing off the last of the Shadows, for some reason they didn't really attack me as they did him, with such a relentless ruthlessness. I glanced sharply over at one that was trying to sneak up on Sora, the thing squirmed and sank back into the ground, running as if ashamed of being caught trying to attack someone.

My mouth opened as I stared at the thing in shock as it vanished completely, my head snapped back to Pete, expression annoyed, as the fat dog… thing seemed to have a bit of a tantrum yelling "You just wait! Nobody, and I do mean nobody messes with the mighty Pete!"

I sighed bored already as Sora sarcastically asked "So 'mighty' Pete… Who lives in this tower anyway?"

Pete slumped slightly as if it was the most obvious thing in the world and said "Oh, ya don't know, eh? Well it's old Yen Sid. 'Course he's probably a Heartless by now!"

Donald shook his head quickly before exclaiming "Master Yen Sid lives here?!" with that the duck ran inside of the building as fast as he could probably go. I just sighed and followed behind the duck to make sure he didn't break or steal anything, not that he would considering that it was Yen Sid. I just couldn't deal with Pete anymore.

I heard Goofy say "Yen Sid is the King's teacher!"

I looked around at the strange building before glancing back as the other two ran in behind us saying "Well the only way to go is up." The three of them nodded and we began climbing the stairs. On the way we were attacked by Heartless, mostly Shadows, but we plowed through them with little problem. As we entered the first room a barrier sprang up around us and Heartless started to attack. It didn't take long to defeat them but I now had a new gash in my jeans and my leg was bleeding ever so slightly but I left it alone. My hoodie kept getting attacked as well as there was a long slash in the back and the hood was now gone. We continued up to the second room and had the same thing happen, I grabbed a health orb and placed it on my leg where it stopped bleeding and the slight ache that I had been feeling vanished.

Donald frustrated began to rant "Heartless, Heartless, Heartless! Things haven't changed one bit!" I sighed slightly as I listened while grabbing everything that the Heartless had left behind.

The duck crossed his arms and began to tap his foot while Goofy turned to Sora saying "Well, it's a good thing we're on the job, then."

Sora slumped slightly as he said in disbelief "So the worlds aren't at peace after all?"

I sighed again looking at the three, shaking my head _Sora, Sora, Sora, you innocent, naive young thing _and said"Come on lets go." The three nodded and we continued upstairs, hitting one more room before we reached the Wizard's Loft. My eye was twitching in annoyance as my hoodie now was missing both sleeves, a hood, and had a large gash in the back. The three boys as naïve as they were, were smart enough to stay away from me, giving nervous glances over in my direction. I crossed my arms and leaned against the wall, taking a neutral expression, as the other three moved over to the desk. Goofy and Donald were standing at attention, while Sora had his arms behind his head and was casually looking around. The two bowed as Sora looked at them in confusion, even I raised an eyebrow at the two of them.

Yen Sid was an old man with a very large beard dressed all in blue, he gave a slight nod before Donald began to speak "Master Yen Sid! It's an honor!"

Sora waved and casually greeted "Hey there!"

Donald and Goofy jerked up to him, a shocked Donald berating him all the way "Sora! Show some respect!" Yen Sid leaned forward waving his hands slightly, calming Donald down. He looked back to me and gestured for me to come forward. I blinked before pushing myself away from the wall and walking towards him.

He placed his hands on his lap for a moment observing the four of us for a second or two before saying in a deep voice "So, you are Sora. Now then, have you seen the King yet?"

I shoved my hands into what was left of my hoodie's pockets keeping silent as I waited for Goofy to answer "Yes, we did Master. But we didn't get a chance to talk to him."

The older man gave a slight nod and said "Yes… the King has been quite busy of late. Therefore, it would seem the task of instructing you four…" he glanced at me slightly before revising "…you three, more like, upon my shoulders. You have a perilous journey in front of you. You must be well prepared." The three boys glanced at me from the corner of their eyes wondering why they were the only ones that needed to be instructed.

Sora's face fell slightly though when Yen Sid's words sunk in causing him to ask "You mean… we have to go on another quest? I was looking forward to finding my friend Riku, so we could go back to the islands."

Yen Sid nodded slightly and mystically said "Yes, I know. However everything in your journey, Sora, is connected. Whether you will find your way home to the islands... Whether you will return alone or with your friend... And, whether or not the islands will still be there. And the key that connects them all is you, Sora."

Sora placed a hand on his heart questioning "I'm … the key?"

His hand moved forward and he summoned the Keyblade, Yen Sid continuing "Chosen wielder of the Keybalde! You are the key that will open the door to light." Sora nodded resolutely, Yen Sid looked over at the three of them before turning to me saying "You come from a very far place; a world's that knowledge surpasses even my own when it comes to the nature of Nobodies."I blinked and the other three stared at me as he continued "Yet with that knowledge, you will chose what road to take, the road to dusk or the road to twilight."

I looked down slightly before smiling up at him as I asked "How about I make a new road?" Yen Sid blinked before giving the slightest hint of smile. He turned back to the other three who returned their attention to the older man when I glanced sharply at them. He waved a hand over the table causing a poof of smoke, a book appearing when it cleared. My nose wrinkled slightly when I smelled a small amount of sulfur.

He twirled his hand and raised it slightly before using a pushing motion making the book turn and move towards us all the while saying "This book contains valuable knowledge you will need on your journey. Study it carefully. Once you have finished, we will speak of the enemies you will surely confront." He turned toward me gesturing at the door saying "If you would enter that room, you will be able to gain new garments." I nodded and moved into the room as Sora began to read through the book.

* * *

I moved through the door silently, closing it with a quiet thump, causing the three fairies to turn towards me. The one in red, Flora, gasped and exclaimed "My, my, what a lovely young girl we have here. If you're looking for new cloths you came to the right place."

The one in blue, Merryweather, moved forward and circled me slightly saying "She is quite pretty but she's so close to the edge of darkness. Are we sure it's right for us to help her?"

I looked over my shoulder at the fairy and shrugged as I explained "Well, I was called the User of Darkness. Nothing I can do about that."

The one in green, Fauna, gave a gentle smile saying "Now, now, Master Yen Sid wouldn't have sent her to us, if he didn't trust her."

Flora nodded with a smile saying "That is very true Fauna, besides she may be close to the darkness but I sense that her heart is true." I scratched the back of my head slightly, looking at the ground in embarrassment. Merryweather moved in front of me waving her wand instantly changing my cloths to blue. Flora immediately changed it to pink and I grimaced at the color. None of the fairies noticing my obvious dislike for the color as my cloths changed from pink, blue, and green.

"Um… excuse me." The three of them ceased arguing to look up at me as I continued with my interruption "Can you choose and continue this… debate over Sora's cloths?" They looked at each other smiling before nodding at each other flicking their wands all at the same time. I closed my eyes at the bright flash. Opening them slowly as the glow faded. I had gained a black coat that ended at around my knees, black gloves covered my hands where I could feel metal covering the knuckles. I looked down to see I had been given a black tank with a mix of the Nobodies and Heartless symbols starting on my left side and extending across my front and back. There were fire-like streaks of white that traveled across my chest and back, the longest one stopping just short of my right side. I had black cargo pants that had a silver chain connected to my left hip. Black gym shoes with white laces adorned my feet. I could feel a pair of sunglasses resting on the top of my head. Pulling them off I saw that they were silver with flames running down the sides of the frames; they also had a dark reddish tint to the lenses. I felt a choker around my neck and fingered it feeling the yin yang symbol. I could feel a smile widening as I took in my entire attire. I looked up at the three fairies who looked to be very pleased with themselves and said enthusiastically "I love it, thank you so much."

The three smiled and nodded, Flora saying "Not a problem dear, now Master Yen Sid most likely would like to talk to you." I nodded before leaving, looking over at Yen Sid who nodded slightly.

Sora turned around spotting me, smiled and said "Hey I like the look."

I gave a smile with a nod saying "Thanks." Sora nodded and walked into the room with Donald and Goofy. As soon as the door closed I turned and walked over to the desk.

Yen Sid folded his hands on his lap as he said "This is for your knowledge, if you chose to tell the others you may." I nodded slightly before he continued "You are very close to the darkness. If you haven't noticed yet, you will soon enough notice that you have a slight degree of control over the weaker Heartless. The stronger the Heartless the less control you shall have. Even with the weaker Heartless you will not be able to completely control them. You of all people must be more careful when it comes to the darkness, for it has the potential to swallow you whole. If the Nobodies discover you or the User of Light, they have the potential to gain the advantage."

I blinked asking "There's a User of Light? Wait, don't answer that, stupid question of course there is everything comes in twos." The older man nodded and stood up walking over to the window where I spotted the Gummi Ship.

He looked down at me, as I stared out the window, and said "You have knowledge of what will happen in the future; you must chose if you are going to keep things the same or if you are going to change the outcome. If you decide to change things, you will lose the safety of knowing what will happen next."

I stared up at him in shock before turning serious again and saying "Things have already changed by me simply being here, whether or not this is good or bad no one knows, all I can do is press forward and hope that things will turn out alright. Knowing the future doesn't mean that I know for certain how things will happen or how they will occur. It just creates another burden to bear."

He nodded at my words before reaching into the folds of his robe pulling out a wristband bracelet saying "This will help you on your journey." I took it and looked down at the thing in my hand, it was silver but it had a crimson streak in it that sort of looked like fire moving in a single stream connecting to a yin yang symbol, I placed it on my left wrist. Yen Sid looked over to the door that had just opened, he gestured to the others to join us at the window.

Donald spotting the ship yelled in excitement "Hey! It's the Gummi Ship!"

The three of them run over to the window joining Yen Sid and I, Sora pumping a fist, before turning to the other two asking "So you guys ready to go?"

I rolled my eyes as they stood at attention in front of the wizard who waved a calm down at them while saying "Now, now, just a moment." The three of them slumped and I leaned against the wall as he continued "Because of your previous endeavors, the worlds have returned to their original states. That means the pathways between them have disappeared."

The three slumped even further down when they heard this Donald asking the question that plagued all of their minds "How do we get around?"

Yen Sid waved away Donald's concern as if it were nothing by saying "Do not fear. If what the King suspected proves true, the worlds have prepared new pathways along which you may travel. These pathways may be utilized by unlocking special gates. How these gates are opened, I'm afraid I do not know... However, the Keyblade will serve as your guide. When a beam of light radiates from the Keyblade, return to the Gummi Ship. Though the worlds may seem far apart and out of reach, they nonetheless remain connected by invisible ties. As do our hearts."

Sora blinked muttering "Our hearts are connected."

The older man gave a small nod and said "That is correct."

Sora confirmed "Got it!"

I looked over at the older man who said "But be warned. As you proceed... The Heartless and the Nobodies will be using their own paths: Corridors of darkness, to travel from world to world. They may be attempting to link these dark pathways to the gates between the worlds."

Donald smacked a fist into the palm of his hand before exclaiming, with me rolling my eyes, "Hey! That's not fair!"

Yen Sid paused for a moment before choosing to ignore the duck and continued "Now then, that's all the information I can give you. Go forth, Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Ghost. Everyone is waiting."

Sora turned to the other three and said "Okay, let's get going!"

The three turn to man, standing straight, Donald saying "Master Yen Sid!"

All three of the boys saluted the older man as I stood there with a 'you have got to be kidding me' face, Goofy saying "We sure do appreciate the help." The three of them ran down the hall as I walked behind them, shaking my head. I looked around as I boarded the ship. It seemed to be the only thing the game had gotten wrong so far. It was far larger than it appeared on the game. There were the normal three seats but there were another four in the back, as well as a small kitchen and bathroom. The seats I found out could also change into beds which explained the generous amount of leg room.

I glanced up at the boys who were talking to Chip and Dale as Sora asked "Only one?" I moved over to see what they were looking at, spotting the map on the console. As I looked it over I saw the familiar world of Hollow Bastion, giving a small smile before going to a seat in the back.

I took the one closest to the door on the right and in front, behind where Donald normally sat asking "How long is this trip going to take?" The three of them looked back at me, before Sora and Goofy turned to Donald.

The Duck sighed, looking at the map again before answering "About five hours, if Sora doesn't crash us into any worlds on the way and we don't get blown up by Heartless."

I blinked and asked slowly "Sora… crashed… you guys into a world?"

Donald nodded as Sora piped up indigent "It was only one time!" I rolled my eyes, before running a hand through my hair again, taking the sunglasses off the top of my head in the process.

I looked up to see the boys arguing and said "Guys…" They looked over at me as I continued "… I don't care if you argue, just do it quietly 'cause I'm going to sleep. Oh… warning I am not a morning person and I tend to lash out at the people who wake me up." I leaned back and rolled onto my side, closing my eyes on their perturbed faces, with a satisfied smirk.


	7. The reunion

Alright thanks for the reviews everyone who reviewed. Blackoutpanther to answer your question, yep and I'll be taking Japanese next semester so that'll be fun. Another shout out to purplekitsune-chan for the review as well as Anexi. All reviews are greatly appreciated. Plot bunnies I tell you though are evil because I just got one for Code Geass and Mobile Suit Gundam 00 and yes this was written at almost 3am, luckily it was a weekend.

Disclaimer time: I don't own.

* * *

Chapter 7: The reunion

Five hours and one yelling match later we landed in Hollow Bastion. I stretched my arms up above my head as I walked out of the gummi ship. My expression softened as the boys ran ahead excitedly, giving a soft smile as I jogged up behind them as they stopped in front of the brick wall. I looked up at the dark creepy castle and narrowed my eyes. I could _feel _darkness coming from that place. I shrugged it off and looked at the bustling town, sitting on the wall and listening as Sora said excitedly "It's Hollow Bastion!"

Goofy was still looking up at the slightly ruined castle while saying "Gawrsh, it looks kinda different now."

Donald turned to the rest of us slightly concerned and said "I hope Leon and the gang are okay."

Goofy turned and looked around his eyes landing on something on top of one of the buildings; I heard a slight warping sound before Goofy turned to the three of us saying. "Uh-oh. Looks like we're gonna have to do some fightin'"

I blinked before getting off the wall Sora looked at the three of us excitedly saying "Let's look around!" We all nodded, Donald and Goofy because they knew that they would never win the argument, me because I wanted to look around too. We moved through the Marketplace quickly, stopping to talk to Donald's Uncle Scrooge for a few minutes, before heading into the Borough.

A beam of light shot up out of the ground causing Donald to yell out in confusion "Hey, what's going on?"

"That's the town's defense mechanism." We all looked around for the source of the youthful, female voice looking up and spotting her.

Sora yelling out excitedly "Yuffie!"

The ninja waved before gasping and yelling "Look out!" There was a slight flash and the Keyblade flashed into Sora's hands as a Nobody came out of nowhere to hit him. It didn't take long before we were surrounded by Dusks. I felt my jaw clench in frustration before feeling power building up in my left hand. I looked down to see darkness forming around it and a sheathed sword appearing in my hand. I blinked down at it for a moment before gripping the blade in my right hand and pulling it out of the sheath, facing the Dusks. It felt right, well balanced and seemed to be made for me as it moved easily through the Dusks. It wasn't long before we defeated all of them and I looked down to get a proper look at the sword. It had a white handle surrounded by cast metal with a brass plated guard and pommel. There was a yin yang symbol on the guard. I moved it up so I could look at the blade. It was a straight blade which was typical of Tai Chi swords and 30" of deadly steel. I slide the blade back into the sheath that was clenched in my left hand. The sheath was white that had a brass collar and tip as well as a corded rope for easy grip. I blinked as it vanished in a stream of darkness that condensed around my left wrist, taking the form of the silver wrist band that I had gotten from Yen Sid. I smiled while mentally thanking the old man for his gift. I looked back up as Yuffie waved and called down to us "Hey, you guys!" I watched as she jumped down, landing she brushed off her shorts slightly as she said "I see you're still in top form. And the new girl isn't half bad either."

I quirked an eyebrow at her, Sora smacked a hand against his chest as he said "What'd you expect?" He gestured beck at me before continuing "Ghost, here is a good fighter we're lucky to have her."

I raised both eyebrows as I turned toward the brunette saying "Flattery will get you nowhere, young man."

I winked at his confused look making him smile before he turned back to Yuffie saying "Looks like you're doing okay."

She placed her hands on her hips saying "Well, what did YOU expect?"

Donald looked up at the young ninja asking "How are the others?"

She looked over at him answering "Great!"

I looked around as Sora asked "Hey, Yuffie. Have you seen the King and Riku?"

She started to walk away while answering "Nope." She ran a few feet ahead of us before stopping and turning around to yell back to us "But I had a feeling I'd see you guys again."

Sora turned to the girl, placing a hand in front of his face saying in a low voice "'We may never meet again, but we'll never forget each other'"

The ninja pointed slightly and smiled asking "Is that suppose to be Leon?" Donald and Goofy look at the boy before the two of them started laughing; even I gave a small laugh, remembering that I'm not suppose to know them. Yuffie placed a hand on her hip and leaned forward a bit as she informed us "Everybody's working on stuff over at Merlin's house. C'mon!" The girl than preceded to run around the corner out of view, I shook my head and smiled at the girl. I moved forward past the guys and started to follow the younger girl, reaching the corner before the three of them, as they started to jog to catch up with me. I glanced back and smiled, as I headed for Merlin's house. The door was left open so the four of us walked right in. I moved to the back so I could lean on a wall as I looked around the room. Cid, the blonde man, was typing furiously on the computer, while Aerith and Leon stood there watching. Aerith had brown hair tied in a braid and was wearing pink, while Leon was a tall man with shoulder length brown hair. Yuffie leaned in front of us gesturing at the group surrounding the computer saying "Meet the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee!"

Aerith was the first to turn around and say something "We missed you!"

Cid had turned around in his seat and thumbed his nose while stating "Well, if you ain't in top shape."

Leon gave a very small smile as he said with his arms crossed "I knew it." Yuffie, the guys, and I walked forward with me moving over to the wall, shoving my hands into coat pockets as I remained silent.

Sora asked "Knew what?"

Leon uncrossed his arms, as I watched him, before answering "A while back, everyone suddenly remembered you guys, all at the same time."

My mouth twitched in to a small smile _Namine._

The three boys jumped back before Sora said "You… remembered? Wait! Does that mean you forgot about us?!"

I sighed slightly _Yes Sora, remembering does entitle forgetting._

Donald annoyed sarcastically said "Thanks!"

We all looked over at Yuffie as she placed her hands on her hips and asked "So where've you guys been all this time? And who is she?"

I tilted my head slightly as the others turned to me as Goofy answered "This is Ghost we met her on another world." I nodded and smiled at the group as Goofy continued gesturing at himself, Sora, and Donald "We were sleepin''

Cid shook his head while he asked "Where? In cold storage?" The three boys acted nervous for a moment as I nodded vigorously with a smile that was a mix of annoyance and amusement.

The quite girl, Aerith, piped up "It doesn't matter. This is great. Everyone's together again and we already have new friends!"

I blinked and looked over at Leon who muttered "Aerith, you trust to easily."

I, unfortunately, wasn't the only one who heard his comment as Sora said defensively "Hey, you can trust Ghost!"

I gave Leon an amused smile before turning to Sora and said "You trust to easily as well Sora."

His jaw dropped and he yelled "Hey! I'm trying to defend you and you take their side!"

I shrugged saying dismissively "Well, ya do."

I heard someone sigh as the door opened and someone say "You and your cynicism. You _would _say something like that." I looked to the door and saw a blonde girl about my age standing there. She had a black tank top with a white cross going across the front, a silver jacket that stopped at about mid-torso with black trim and straps that had silver fleur de leis(sp?) on them that went to mid thigh. The sleeves of the jacket were ¾ length and were slit from the elbow down. She had silver pants on with black flame-like markings on them, a slit that went to about her knee showed black boots with a silver design on them. On her right hip a chain with a cross on it that went to about her knee, while her black belt, with its silver diamond shaped buckle, extended on her left side to about mid thigh and ended with a silver cap. She had silver knuckle gloves on that showed off her silver painted nails, a black wrist watch on her left wrist. On closer inspection I saw silver bubbles floating up from silver water. A silver music note hung on a silver chain around her neck, completing the ensemble. I blinked rapidly as I stared at the girl.

Her blue eyes twinkled with mischievousness and fun as I quietly asking "Cydney?"

She flicked a two finger salute at me as she said "Long time no see, Ghost."

My jaw snapped together and I gave a cocky smirk, crossing my arms as I asked "Now… how'd you get here Twilight?"

She shrugged, Leon was looking between us before asking "You two know each other?"

I turned back to him and nodded saying "We go… went to college together."

She moved to stand next to me and commented lightly "You know Leon; you should really trust people, more."

He opened his mouth but I cut in poking her shoulder saying "Don't even get me started on what you should do." I glanced down at her left hip and nodded at the sword that was attached asking "Can you even use that thing?"

Twilight spun towards me exclaiming "Of course! Leon and the others have been teaching me, and Yuffie has been teaching me ninja skills."

My face went blank for a moment before I said "Uh-huh. How much do I want to bet that all you've been doing with Yuffie is trying to pull pranks on Leon?"

Her mouth dropped open and she said "Oh come on. You're no fun." I smiled and winked at her and she returned the smile grinning.

Sora took this opportunity of quiet to ask "So, um… we're trying to find Riku and the King. Have you seen'em?" Leon, Aerith, and Cid shook their heads as I went back to leaning against the wall, Twilight sitting down next to me. Sora looked at the ground and muttered "Right."

Aerith in her kind way said "Sorry. But let us know if there's anything we can do to help. Okay?"

Sora nodded and said "Okay. Thanks."

Cid moved forward, wringing his hands, up into Sora's face causing the boy to move back "Don't go thanking us just yet."

I slid down the wall quietly to sit next to Twilight, as Leon explained what Cid meant the two of us were having our own conversation Twilight saying "You know you don't have to call me Twilight."

I raised an eyebrow at the girl before saying "Alright. Answer when I call. 'Kay?" She nodded and I stepped back before calling loudly "Cyd?" Two people answered back, the man at the computer and the girl in front of me. Raising a hand I continued "My point. It's nothing Cid!" The blond man turned away muttering under his breath something about "stupid punks" as Twilight scratched the back of her head slightly before noticing that the door was open. Glancing around at each other the two of us followed quickly after Leon, as soon as we passed the threshold we heard a poof behind us indicating that Merlin had shown up. We smiled at each other as we caught up. I told her what had happened at Twilight Town and the fact that I had met Axel.

Her grin widening even further at my mention of him, I gave her a slight push on her shoulder as she explained what had happened "Well you see…"

* * *

Have you ever been so sucked into a story that for a moment it felt like you were there? Well I think I am having one of those moments right now because looking around there is a castle in front of me. There was no castle back at my college…I think. If there had been all of the cranes wouldn't be hanging around wily nily because that would have been a safety hazard. As I sat up from the ground, the dirt a bluish tinge, I glanced around, brushing my short light blond hair out of my eyes, and finally figured out where I was. I, of course, being the calm person that I was didn't panic in the least…not a bit. "HOLY ZEUS!!! THIS IS HOLLOW BASTION!!! I SHOULDN'T BE HERE!! THIS CAN'T BE REAL!! I HAVE To…go to…class."I trailed off because at that moment I had heard a warping sound from behind me that I had gotten very familiar with over the years. I glanced back and saw the Shadow Heartless creeping up on me and while normally I would have thought that they were cute…this wasn't exactly a normal moment…for anyone. I did the only thing a sane person could do at the moment when faced with a video game minion of evil, I ran. I ran as fast as I could all the while screaming "NO! YOU CAN'T TAKE MY HEART!! I DON'T WANNA BE A NOBODY!!!" The ground beneath me changed and as I ran the dirt became cobblestones and I glanced behind me at the Shadows, who had now been joined by Soldier. It was then that I hit a wall with an "Oof!" As I rubbed my forehead I looked up to see not a wall but a familiar brunette with shoulder length hair and a scar running across his face. He blinked down at me slowly before looking to see what I had been running from as I stared up at him from the where I was seated on the ground. My light blue eyes blinked rapidly as I heard the unfamiliar sound of metal on metal as the man, Leon, unsheathed his gunsword and began to cut down the Heartless from behind me.

I looked up as a soft female voice asked "Are you alright?" As I looked up the pink dress I looked into gentle green eyes and nodded slightly as the girl offered me a hand which I gladly accepted. As I stood up she said "You're not from around here are you? I'm Aerith."

I looked over at her, ripping my eyes off of Leon as he finished off the last of the Heartless, and said "I'm Cydney but I'm normally called Twilight."

Aerith tilted her head and asked curiously "Twilight?"

I smiled and nodded as Leon asked with his arms crossed, sword nowhere to be seen, "Where are you from?"

I scratched my cheek _Well I can't just go about saying that I'm from reality…so I better think of something fast. _"Someplace far, far away." Leon raised an eyebrow as Aerith laughed quietly into her hand.

* * *

I looked up at the old man with long white beard and tall blue hat as he stroked his beard and went "Hmm." Aerith and Leon had brought me back to Merlin's place, at Aerith's insistence, and had been lucky enough to catch Merlin before he headed off to wherever it was that he was going. As Merlin pondered my sudden unexpected arrival I looked around as Cid, sitting at the computer, leaned forward against his knees and eyed me suspiciously. Yuffie was sitting on the table and watching Merlin as he circled around me as I stood awkwardly in the middle of the room. Leon was leaning against a wall with his eyes close and Aerith gave me a reassuring smile as I looked over at her. I smiled in return before directing my attention, along with everyone else's, back to Merlin as he said "Well, I am quite pleased to announce that she is no wielder of Darkness, i-in fact there is a great deal of Light in her, which is probably the reason that the Heartless were chasing after her. I would even go so far as to say that she is the User of Light."

I stared at him confused and went "Huh?"

Aerith added further words to my expression and asked "What's the User of Light?"

Merlin waved a finger as he explained dramatically "The User of Light is said to be the ultimate wielder of Light. This User will add to the power of good and help the wielder of the Keyblade overcome the powers of darkness and evil. Yet with the User of Light comes the User of Darkness as well."

Cid thumbed his nose as he asked "So if the User of Light is the ultimate good, is the User of Darkness the ultimate evil?"

Merlin shook his head rapidly as he replied "No, no. The User of Darkness is on the brink, she can choose to either do good or evil. We'll just have to see what the User of Darkness will choose." I blinked as the old wizard turned to me and said "As you are here I think that I'll start you on some magic lessons to prepare you for your journey. Leon if you…"

I cut in asking "Journey? What journey?!"

Merlin blinked as he glanced over at me saying "Everyone has a journey, either it be through peril and danger or simply through life. Everyone has a journey. Now as I was saying before, Leon if you and Yuffie would be so kind as to help teach her how to defend herself, that would be most helpful. Yuffie also, one more thing…don't sit on my table." The Wutainese teen grinned and jumped off the table and landed in front of me.

Taking my hand she gave it a hearty shake saying "I'm the great Ninja Yuffie. It's nice ta meetcha User of Light."

I grinned in response to the other girl's grin as I said "Hi. I'm Twilight."

Leon looked between the two of us and shook his head as he saw the identical grins and muttered to Cid "Now we have two hyper-active teens to look out for." Cid chuckled and watched as Yuffie and I chatted, getting to know each other quickly as night fell on Hollow Bastion.

* * *

I woke up the next morning in complete confusion as I looked around the unfamiliar settings. Just to make sure that I wasn't dreaming I pinched my arm wincing as I felt the pain. _So that was real! This is real! I'm really in KH II!!_ I ran a hand through my shortish hair and looked down at my cloths which I hadn't bothered to change out of last night. A knock on the door brought my attention there and I answered "Come in."

I blinked as Aerith's head poked into the room and she smiled as she said "Breakfast." I grinned and got up, following the other girl into the other room to see the others all ready at the table.

Leon glanced over at me as I sat down and said "Yuffie is taking you shopping for a new outfit, you can't fight in that. Then you're coming with me to pick out a weapon."

I blinked rapidly before saying "I don't have any cash."

He barely glanced at me as he took his food saying "You aren't paying."

I cut in quickly "I can't take your munny."

He glanced over at me as he said "It's fine." I opened my mouth for a moment before deciding to let it go.

* * *

It didn't take long before we had finished breakfast and Yuffie had grabbed me and dragged me to part of the marketplace that they hadn't shown in the game. Looking around it was like an open-air mall. There were shops with everything from books on magic to fun and cloths of all different kinds. As we walked through the clothing stores I kept rejecting all of the outfits that Yuffie put together. I pulled a black shirt out and held it up but she said "No, black washes you out with a pale complexion but pure white is no good either. Umm, how about this?" She held up a black tank with a white cross the front but with a silver jacket with black trim and straps with silver fleur de leis that would stop about mid-torso. I took the shirt and jacket and headed into the changing room. I blinked as pants landed on my head. I pulled the silver pants off and moved further into the room as Yuffie tossed a pair of black boots into the room.

* * *

As I stepped out of the changing room Yuffie grinned and clapped at my new attire. My cloths consisted of the black tank top with the white cross going across the front, a silver jacket that stopped about mid-torso with black trim and straps that had silver fleur de leis on them that went to about mid-thigh. The sleeves of the jacket were ¾ length and were slit from the elbow down. The silver pants that Yuffie had grabbed had black flame-like streaks on them and a slit that went to about my knee that showed off the black boots with a silver design on them. There was a black studded belt with a silver diamond shaped buckle that extended on my left side to about mid-thigh and ended with a silver cap. Glancing around Yuffie grabbed a silver chain with a silver cross on it and tossed it to me. I caught it and blinked before hooking it to my right hip, making it end at about my knee. As soon as that was done she also tossed over a pair of silver knuckle gloves that I slipped onto my hands. My black wrist watch and silver music note necklace remained where they were. Yuffie grinned and said "Hey, this is a good look for you." I grinned as she turned to register and paid for it.

As we stepped out of the store I looked over at her and said "I'll pay you back somehow."

The ninja smiled saying "Don't worry about it." I shook my head as we headed out of the open-air mall and spotted Leon by the weapons shop.

I blinked as he held up a sword of some sort saying "This is your weapon." I reached out and he placed the sword in my hands and I blinked at the unfamiliar weight. I tilted my head confused slightly and gripped the handle unsheathing the sword and staring at it. Leon watched me carefully and seeing my unease with the blade sighed and took it from my hands saying "We'll start with the basics."

* * *

I slumped in a chair back in Merlin's house. Leon had gone through the basics and then through basic sword technique. Aerith placed a hand on my shoulder as she set a plate of food in front of me for dinner. I looked up at her with a tired smile and she returned it and said "Merlin will work with you after dinner." I groaned and nodded.

After I had finished eating Leon watched me head upstairs with Merlin and said to Aerith "She's a good kid." Aerith blinked and smiled quietly as he walked out of the room.

* * *

Magic came to me much easier then sword play, I picked up magic far faster. Merlin smiled as he watched me juggle a fire ball. I had gotten the basic spells quickly and was working on mastering those spells to their fullest before he would let me go to the next level. I looked up at Merlin as he said "I think that's enough for one night. You have done exceptionally well, my fastest student yet."

I grinned in response to that and said as we headed downstairs "Thanks Merlin." I headed back to the room that I had found myself in that morning and fell asleep on the bed.

* * *

Over the next several days I had gotten a routine down. The mornings were mine to spend as I saw fit and I usually spent them with Yuffie and would come up with plans to prank Leon. Yuffie and I had become firm friends in a very short period of time but we only had the mornings to have fun. Right after Lunch I would head out with Leon and train with my sword, which he had informed me was a Saber, and after dinner I would train with Merlin. As I looked around the place Leon and I usually trained I sighed. Leon was late and he was never late. I glanced up as what sounded almost like a small plane whizzed by overhead._ A gummi ship?! I guess Sora and the others are here. _I sheathed my sword and took off running towards Merlin's with a few stumbles along the way.

* * *

By the time I got to Merlin's house the others were already talking to Sora, Goofy, and Donald. I listened in on the other side of the door as Aerith said happily "It doesn't matter. This is great. Everyone's together again and we already have new friends!"

I blinked barely catching what was said as Leon muttered "Aerith, you trust to easily."

I jerked upright as Sora, in his unmistakable voice exclaimed "Hey, you can trust Ghost!" There was only one person that I knew who was called Ghost and she wasn't suppose to be here…then again neither was I.

It was then that I heard her say in an amused voice "You trust to easily as well Sora."

The unmistakable cynic and sarcastic was in Hollow Bastion and Sora was arguing with her "Hey! I'm trying to defend you and you take their side!"

I heard the non-chelantness in her voice as she said "Well, ya do."

I opened the door with a sigh and said "You and you cynicism. You _would _say something like that."

A girl with dark blond hair turned to look at me and her jaw dropped as she spotted me, her blue eyes flicking across me before asking quietly "Cydney?"

I gave her a two finger salute and said "Long time no see, Ghost."

Her jaw snapped shut and she gave a cocky smirk, crossing her arms and saying "Now… how'd you get here Twilight?"

I just shrugged before turning to Leon as he asked "You two know each other?"

Ghost turned to him, nodded, and explained "We go…went to college together."

I blinked and moved next to the other girl saying to Leon "You know Leon; you should really trust people more."

He opened his mouth to reply but I had directed my attention to Ghost who had lightly poked my shoulder and said "Don't even get me started on what you should do." I watched as she glanced down at my sword and asked "Can you even use that thing?"

I spun towards her defensively saying "Of course. Leon and the others have been teaching me, and Yuffie has been teaching me ninja skills."

Her face went black for a moment before she said "Uh-huh. How much do I want to bet that all you've been doing with Yuffie is trying to pull pranks on Leon?"

My mouth dropped open for a moment before saying "Oh come on. You're no fun." She smiled and winked and I returned the smile with a grin.

Sora took the quiet as an opportunity to ask the others "So, um…we're trying to find Riku and the King. Have you seen 'em?" Leon, Aerith, and Cid shook their heads as Ghost leaned against a wall and I sat down next to her. I looked up at Ghost taking in her own changed appearance. She was wearing black coat that ended at her knees. The coat covered a black tank top that had the Nobody and Heartless symbol connected on one side and white fire-like streaks running across the shirt. She had black cargo pants and black shoes with white laces. Her knuckle gloves were different then mine and not just because they were black, the knuckles of these gloves were metal. She had a silver and red wristband on her left wrist and silver sunglasses were resting on her head. A chocker that on closer inspection held the symbol of a yin yang was wrapped around her neck.

I turned my attention back to what was going on as Ghost slid down the wall to sit next to me, Leon saying "Hollow Bastion's got a problem. A big problem."

* * *

"…well you know the rest." She pulled the sword, sheath and all, off of her hip and handed it to me so I could look at it closer. It was a saber, the sheath black and cast metal with an intricate silver tip and collar. The hilt was cast wire black and gold surrounded by a cast metal cup style guard with intricate engravings and a gold phoenix design. I pulled the blade free to see an intricate blood grove running the length of the 27 ½" blade. I gave a small whistle and gave an experimental twirl, deciding I liked my blade better. Yet it worked for her, it was light and not to large, anything bigger and she probably would have killed herself by now. I handed the blade back as we entered the Bailey, slightly behind Leon. His expression becoming more and more annoyed as time went by, probably because of our quick almost constant chatter. I moved over to sit on the brick fence wall thing, leaning against the wall at the same time, keeping Leon in view. Twilight rested her elbows on it leaning down and staring at the castle in the distance. All three of us staring at the black sea of Heartless, surrounding the castle with the occasional white splotch of a Dusk running around. Twilight gave a quite "Yikes." under her breath. We turned slightly as we heard Sora and the other three come up the steps.

Leon watched them for a moment before turning to look back at the castle saying "Look at that." The young brunette gasped as he spotted the army. Leon continued "We want to restore Hollow Bastion to what it used to be. Who knows… maybe something better. There's still a lot to do, but I'm sure we can handle everything…" uncertainty entered into his voice "Except… for that…" He pointed at something and as I followed the direction of his finger, I spotted two Dusks heading towards the castle. "…and that."

Sora looked back up at the older man saying "We'll handle 'em!"

Leon turned to look down at Sora saying "Well, that's good to hear. So Sora… do you know what's going on, then?"

Sora answered "There's this guy, Pete, who's been going around plotting with the Heartless. But he's not smart enough to tie his own shoes. The ones we need to worry about are the Nobodies."

Goofy added "And those Organization XIII guys in charge, too!"

Everyone jumped and looked around as a deep voice said "You called?" I glanced down at Twilight and smiled and she returned the smile before straitening up as I got off of the ledge.

My grin grew wider as we started to follow Sora and the guys who had run outside, I muttered "And here comes Xemy, wonder how long he's been listening in just to make a cool entrance?"

She gave a small laugh before saying "Probably as long as he wanted."

My smile grew as we walked out to hear Saix say "You're doing well." The Keyblade flashed into Sora's hand and he got into a fighting stance.

I crossed my arms as the same deep voice of Xemnas said "This calls for a celebration…" I looked over as Dusks appeared and glanced over at Twilight who had pulled out her saber. Darkness surrounded my right hand as I summoned my unsheathed sword, face blank as I turned back to the Bailey. Leon had pulled out his gunblade and Sora had turned to help him as Donald and Goofy went to face a different group of Dusks. The gate slammed behind us, almost hitting Twilight who squeaked and jumped out of the way. I ducked out of the way as a Dusk tried to take off my head. I thrust my blade up into the head of the offending Dusk, making it disappear. I glanced back to Twilight who seemed to be holding her own for the moment. I twirled my blade, slicing into another Dusk. It didn't take long for the four of us to defeat all of the Nobodies present.

Twilight sat on the floor with a thump and an exclamation of "Gah, that was hard!" I blinked down at the blonde and banished my sword, the bracelet reappearing on my left wrist.

I walked over to her "If you think that was hard, how are you going to handle the rest of them?" The other girl shuddered as I stretched a hand out to her, she grabbed it and I pulled her to her feet.

I let her hand go as we made our way over to Sora who was running outside as Xemnas said "The Keyblade… a truly marvelous weapon. Were it only in more … capable hands…"

I looked up as I heard the creepy laughter, before glancing over at Twilight muttering "Demy evil laugh." She sighed and slumped slightly shaking her head at his failed attempt at sounding evil, before straightening and laughing quietly with me remembering a conversation we had had on the subject.

Sora looked around before yelling "Show yourselves!" A single figure in a dark hooded trench coat appeared from out of a portal and raised his arms summoning the others. I gave a quiet whistle at their entrance before crossing my arms.

I heard Twilight gasp and start to yell, my hand slapping over her mouth but I could still understand the muffled "HOLY COW! IT'S THE ORGANIZATION!!"

I hissed at her, jerking my head back to the guys, as Goofy basically yelled the same thing "They don't know we know!" I waited until she nodded and removed my hand turning to look back up at the Organization. Sora had turned back to all of us nodding, my eyes passed over him for a second before turning back to the Organization.

Sora yelled up to them "Good! Now we can settle this!"

My eyes narrowed as Xemnas' deep silky voice said " What a shame… and here I thought we could be friends."

They vanished into darkness laughing, and I felt a pull to follow them as Donald jumped up and yelled "Stop!" The duck ran towards a set of stairs with Sora and Goofy following close behind, only to be stopped because a portal had appeared. A single hooded figure stepped out. Donald looked up at the top of the building where the Organization had been a few seconds before and yelled turning back to the man "What's the big idea?!"

The man waved his arms saying in a surfer's voice "Oopsy-daisy!"

Sora demanded "Move!"

The figure, Xigbar, said sarcastically "Now, do you think that's polite, shutting me down like that?" Even though he was the enemy I felt my mouth turn into an amused smile as I watched him deal with Sora.

Sora, frustrated yelled "I said get outta the way!"

Xigbar crossed one of his arms saying "As if! You can talk all you want, but that won't change a thing."

The boys got into a fighting stance and Donald brandished his wand threatening "Then we're gonna make you move!"

Xigbar folded his other arm across his chest while saying "See, that would work… if I were just any old dude. 'Cept I'm not. I'm with the Organization. Nothing 'any old'; about me."

Sora gave a curt laugh and said "Ha! Tough talk for someone who stood on the sidelines while his Nobody flunkeys did the fighting!"

Xigbar placed his hands on his hips and leaned forward saying "Oh, dear. I think you got the wrong impression."

Sora watched as Xigbar waggled his finger at him for a moment before asking sarcastically "You gonna cry?"

I slapped a palm to my head _Nice comeback there Sora, _I heard Twilight snort from behind me.

Xigbar waved a hand before placing it on his chest and said "As if! Why don't I remind you how tough the crowd you're dealing with really is?"

Sora straightened slightly confused "Remind me?"

I sighed slightly, shaking my head before saying "Give it up Xiggy, it's not gonna work."

The hooded man looked over at me tilting his head slightly in confusion asking "Did you just call me… Xiggy?" I grinned and nodded, amusement clear in my eyes, he glanced over at Sora as the boy seemed to snap out of his confusion laughing slightly at what he saw as he exclaimed "That's RIGHT, he used to give me the same exact look."

Sora stared at the man still be bewildered but said anyways "I guess you think you can psych me out by saying really random stuff!"

Xiggy placed a hand on his chin before spreading his arms and leaning down a bit taunting the three of them saying "Gee… I just don't know." He looked up at me after a moment and said "Babe, you really should be on our side."

I watched Xiggy for a moment feeling five very piercing gazes locked on me, I gave a smile and said "Maybe, but I like what side I'm on."

He shrugged slightly saying "For someone so connected to the darkness, I'm surprised you aren't evil." My smile vanished, my face taking a neutral appearance as my eyes changed.

They no longer held their normal good humor; there was an iciness that the others could feel radiating off of me as I said "I will chose the side I'm on, it won't be determined by anyone…" amusement entered back into my eyes as I continued "… with the acronym of Mansex in it."

Xiggy snorted before turning to Sora and giving a slight wave darkness coming up to engulf him while he said "Be a good boy now!"

Donald started to run forward, yelling "Wait!" landing in the spot Xiggy had been in moments before. The duck pushed himself half way up while he said "Nuts! He got away!"

I turned back to Sora as Twilight stared at me I tilted my head slightly as he said "That was weird. WHO gave him the same look?"

Goofy turned to the boy and said "Y'know, I think he was just trying to confuse ya."

Sora looked over at the tall dog… thing and nodded saying "Yeah, you're right. Only one me!"

I flinched as he said that_ Roxas._

The brunette turned to me asking "What did he mean when he said you should be on their side?"

I scratched the back of my head, giving a nervous laugh as I explained "I'm the User of Darkness, so they probably assumed I would be on their side."

The boy blinked rapidly as Twilight piped up "It's kind of a balance system though." We turned to look at her Sora clearly confused, as she continued "I'm the User of Light, so we balance each other out."

I blinked and glanced over at Sora who still looked confused and sighed before saying "Sora, it's complicated and confusing. So I suggest you do as I do and just go with it." I gave him a smile as he nodded, pulling out his membership card.

Donald and Leon walked over as he held it up and read it out loud "The Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee Honorary Member…" I winced slightly as it began to glow, my eyes narrowing as I looked over at Twilight whose hand was glowing. She followed my gaze before gasping and waving her hand as if it was on fire. I stared at her with a 'WTF' face before reaching over and stilling her hand.

She stopped jumping around but her breathing was still heavy, I ordered "Calm down." A flash of darkness escaping my hand to flicker around the light that was glowing on her hand, she stared at it before looking up at me. I blinked slowly as she stared at me before raising an eyebrow and saying "Twilight, you're starting to creep me out."

She blinked rapidly for a moment before she took in a deep breath and said "I'm ok, now."

I released her hand asking "You sure?" She nodded and smiled.

We turned to see the group of guys staring at us, I stared straight back and asked "What?"

Sora smiled and scratched the back of his head, at the weirdness of some girls, asking "You ready to go, Ghost?" I blinked and nodded, glancing back at Twilight questioningly.

She jumped at the chance to ask "Sora, can I go with you? Please, please, please?"

Sora backed up as she walked forward and forced him into a wall saying "Uh… sure." Leon and I shook our heads as the boy gave in to the blonde. Donald was tapping his foot when Sora said yes.

Twilight yelled out excitedly and pumped a fist "WOOT! This is going to be so much fun!"

Sora turned to Leon, apologetically saying "Sorry to run, Leon, but other worlds are calling."

The taller man nodded and crossed his arms saying "Organization XIII… They look tough. Be careful out there." Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Twilight nodded.

I smiled _this is going to be an interesting trip._

Sora smiled and said "See ya soon." Leon smiled and gave a slight wave. The group ran past him, heading towards the gummi ship, I gave a two finger salute as I passed him, Twilight giving him a quick hug that he returned but looked very uncomfortable about. I laughed as she caught up to me as we sped up to catch the guys.

She whistled as the gummi ship came into view saying in an awed tone "It's big."

I looked over at her as the guys got on saying "Of course, you think that all five of us would fit if it wouldn't." As Twilight sat down in the seat next to mine, I leaned against the back of Donald's looking over his shoulder as he started the ship up asking "So, where are we heading?"

The duck looked up at me and pointed to the map and said "This one, The Land of Dragons."

I tilted my head and asked "You ever been there before?"

The duck looked back up at me saying simply "Nope."

I nodded and sat down, Twilight leaned over to me and whispered "What are we gonna do when we get there? I mean we're girls they don't exactly let girls wander around."

I looked at her out of the corner of my eye and shrugged answering quietly "Stay out of sight, and interfere when we have too."

She sighed placing her hands behind her head and leaning back in her seat saying "Awww man. Hey, Donald how long is it going to take to get there?"

He sighed and looked back at us, my head propped against my right fist, I glanced over at him curious as he answered "It'll take about 8 hours."

Twilight jerked up right yelling "WHAT?!"

I simply sighed and looked back out the window "Twilight this is a perfect time to catch up on sleep." I looked over at Donald asking "How're you going to work this, if it takes 8 hours to get there won't you guys be tired?"

He shook his head saying "It'll be night by the time we get there so we'll camp there and explore tomorrow." I nodded and looked back out the window, ignoring Twilight's mutterings that she was bored. I watched the stars pass for a few hours, Twilight having finally been captivated into silence by the stars moving by, closing my eyes and drifting off to sleep with a small smile.


	8. Dragons

A/N: Hi again. I know this is a little later than usual but things have been really hectic, what with classes ending, wiffleball tournaments, getting ready to move back home, and finals coming up. I got a little sidetracked but it's not that late so we're all good. I honestly didn't expect this to be as well received as it has been, so you've all made me very happy. Time for shout outs: The Bad Nut(thanks for the advice), snowowl94, .Rawr., xXxspiralookamixXx, purplekitsune-chan, Anexi, and Mayacompany. Thank you all for the reviews and the adds.

Disclaimer: I don't own.

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Chapter 8: Dragons

The next morning I awoke to Sora and Twilight arguing about something. So far into the argument they didn't even realize I was awake and watching them with a confused expression. I looked over to Donald and asked "What are they arguing about?"

The duck looked up at me explaining "They're trying to figure out how to wake you up."

I blinked and sighed before saying "Well they managed to anyway." I pressed the button that opened the door and jumped down to the ground below. As I stretched I took in my surroundings, there was bamboo everywhere, and looking up a path I saw the grove a little ways away. I glanced back as the others came out and smiled greeting "Good morning."

They smiled and nodded returning "Good morning."

I looked around before asking them "So what shall we do? Breakfast or explore?" Twilight's hand immediately shot up with her yelling "Breakfast!" My eyes twinkled in amusement as I turned to the boys who all agreed to breakfast.

* * *

It wasn't long after we had finished eating that we began to walk around. I sighed as I pulled Twilight up to her feet as she tripped over a flat surface… _again_ saying "You know, sometimes I think you like defying all natural laws. I mean, how can you trip over a FLAT surface?" She chuckled sheepishly and scratched the back of her head.

We looked over at the boys when they started muttering to themselves catching Donald asking "A Heartless?"

Sora said "Let's get the jump on 'em!" Twilight extended a hand and opened her mouth to say something but Sora and Donald had run off already.

Goofy yelling after the two "Gawrsh, maybe we better look before we leap." The three of us glanced at each other and sighed simultaneously before running after the two. Sora and Donald stopped and I blinked as I saw a person crouched down protectively. Goofy looked at the other two asking "Is that Mushu?"

A small red dragon popped over the person's shoulder saying "That's right; I know you heard of me! I'm little, lethal, and legendary! Now y'all scram before I get my dragon dander up!" Twilight and I made eye contact before giggling quietly at the small dragon.

Sora waved at the dragon while saying "Hey, Mushu! We missed you!"

The dragon continued with his 'threats' exclaiming "Yeah, well you better HOPE I miss YOU, or else you're… you're…" He finally looked over to see who it was that was standing there and said "… Sora! Donald! Goofy! You three seem to be traveling in better company these days." My eyes narrowed at the last comment that the dragon made causing him swallow hard when he took in my expression.

The other person watched as Mushu jumped off of her shoulder asking "Do you know them?"

The dragon straightened up as he landed, walking forward and talking at the same time "Know them? Man, we used to kick all kinds of bad guys butt together! Yeah, you know, I helped these guys out of a lot of tight spots. 'Cause I'm a mighty dragon! Right?"

The red 'mighty' dragon leaned against Sora's leg, who moved causing him to fall; Sora gave a slight smile as he said "Something like that. And… you are?"

She stood as she answered "I'm Mulan. Um, no, I-I mean…" I raised an eyebrow at the sudden change in voice as she dropped almost an octave.

As she struggled to come up with a name Mushu piped in saying "Ping!"

Donald crossed his arms and looked at the girl skeptically asking "Mulan Ping?"

Both Twilight and I snorted as she attempted to be manly while saying "Just… Ping. I am Ping, son of Fa Zhou."

Sora, being the lovable naïve idiot that he is sometimes, accepted the answer by asking "You know Mushu?"

The girl nodded still trying to act manly answering "Mushu's one of my family's guardians."

Goofy walked forward slightly saying "We didn't know we were borrowin' somebody as important as a family guardian."

Mushu popped up, causing the boys to jump back in surprise, saying "Yeah, that's right!" the dragon scurried back and up onto Mulan's shoulder "And that puts you three up to your eyeballs in debt to Ping here." The girl gave an awkward smile as Mushu continued "Well. Guess what, kiddies? It's payback time!"

The girl muttered warningly "Mushu…"

The dragon turned to the girl "Ah, they don't mind. Ain't that right?"

Sora placed a hand on his chin "Hmm, sounds fair."

The girl brightened up slightly as the dragon explained the situation "See, Ping here was just on his way to join the Imperial army." The dragon moved over to her other shoulder continuing "We gotta go find the other recruits over at the training camp."

The girl asked the boys "Would you join us? It'll be easier to fit in if I'm with guys, like you."

Sora stared at her confused, as he asked "What do you mean 'fit in'?"

I rolled my eyes at the brunette as Mushu coughed slightly while saying "Well, um, uh, don't…don't worry about that."

Goofy said "You're pretendin' to be a boy, aren't ya?" Sora and Donald looked at Goofy for a second before turning back to Mulan, jumping back in surprise.

Sora stared at her in disbelief and stated "You're a … girl?!"

Twilight and I yelled "Finally!" we both blinked and looked at each other, giving each other a high five while laughing and saying "Psychic moment!"

The group looked at us like we were nuts for a moment before Mulan asked sheepishly "You didn't notice?" Donald and Sora both shook their heads while Mulan said to Mushu "I think it's working."

The dragon crossed his arms and rolled his eyes explaining "I don't know… those two would fall for anything."

Sora spread his arms indigently and said "I'm right here!" as Mulan started to walk off. The other three following her, Twilight and I remained where we were, causing the others to stop and turn around. Sora waved and yelled back to us "Come on, let's go!"

My shoulders dropped in disbelief and pointing between myself and Twilight saying "Girls. We can't come."

Sora stared at us confused asking "Huh?"

I rolled my eyes and gestured at Twilight to take over, who explained "Girls aren't allowed in the camp. Don't worry about us we'll meet up with you guys later, we'll clear out some Heartless in the mean time."

Sora nodded and yelled "Okay!" with that ran off to catch up with the others.

I moved over to the opening in the bamboo grove that overlooked the camp and smirked, asking over my shoulder "How long before they start fighting in the camp?"

She crossed her arms and tilted her head slightly as she answered "I'd give 'em about five minutes." I laughed at that and sat down on one of the larger rocks. It wasn't long before we heard some yelling coming from the distance, Twilight and I caught each other's eye and started laughing. As we settled down to wait for the boy's first mission Sora ran back to the grove to tell us that they were going to have a day of training before they could get any missions. We nodded and the boy took off, the two of looked at each other and shrugged.

I stood up from where I had been crouching and said "Might as well get some training done of our own."

Twilight pouted and asked "Do we have too?"

I blinked and started to walk past her smirking as I said "No, but when you get attacked, don't come running to me for help because you had the opportunity to get stronger." The girl sighed and followed me as we wandered around fighting off the Heartless that randomly appeared. They still didn't attack me like they did everyone else or at least the weaker ones didn't. I winced as an Assault Rider charged me, grazing my arm as I dodged, stabbing my sword into its side and allowing its momentum to do all of the work. The Assault Rider vanished behind me as I stood up. I twirled my right wrist to loosen it up some, as it was sore from all the work we had done. I looked over at Twilight who was flexing her hand to work out some of the pain.

She looked over at me and pointed exclaiming "This was your idea."

I rolled my eyes and banished my sword saying sarcastically "Oh haha, cry me a river and build a bridge. At least you aren't a magnet for the stronger ones, you only attract Shadows."

Her mouth hung open for a second before she retorted "Well, at least yours don't come in swarms. What are you doing?"

I looked back at her from where I had crouched down and held up a stick saying "Firewood." Her mouth formed an 'oh' and she reached down as I continued "Make sure it's dry we don't want any smoke signals."

She nodded and said "'Kay." I stood up and was heading back to the grove, when I heard a thump and an "Owie" from behind me.

I sighed and turned around, shaking my head an asking "What am I going to do with you?" She gave a sheepish laugh, scratching the back of her head from where she sat on the ground. I moved over to her with a small smile and began to pick up the bundle of sticks that she had dropped. She grabbed some but had a much smaller pile than she did originally. After making it back to the grove with no incident, at least concerning the Heartless Twilight tripping... that was another story; we set up the fire pit. Twilight cast a fire spell and we soon had a warm cheery fire going. We talked for a couple of hours exchanging more detailed stories of what we had been doing here when, we heard a twig snap and our heads jerked over to the entrance of the grove, I summoned my sword as Twilight placed a hand on her own. My eyes narrowing as a figure entered into the grove stopping when he spotted us.

"Now why would a couple of girls be here?"

My hand tightened on my hilt when I didn't recognize the voice, I kept silent as Twilight stuttered "Wh-who a-are you?!"

I rolled my eyes slightly, yet kept my gaze on the unknown figure as he asked amusement clear in his voice "Why should I tell you, little girl?"

I stood up with a ring of metal as I pulled my sword free threatening "Come forward now or prepare to taste steel."

He laughed slightly before asking "And what do you think you'll be able to do with that?"

I gave a wolfish grin that sent shudders down Twilight's spin as the iciness returned saying quietly "I can kill you." With that I moved forward quickly, swinging the sword up to his throat before he had even registered what was going on and ordered "Move."

He gave a small "eep" and moved into the light that was given off by the fire, Twilight's mouth dropped open as we looked at the imperial soldier and she said "You have got to be kidding me."

I looked over at her before giving a small smile and asked "Do you happen to have any rope, Twilight?" Her grin widened and she nodded, pulling rope out of… who knows where. I moved behind the man and clubbed him with the hilt of my sword, knocking him unconscious. It didn't take long before we had him tied, gagged, and bound to a nearby boulder.

Twilight glanced over at me asking "Would you have really killed him?"

I blinked and glanced over at her with a small smile answering lightly "Probably not."

* * *

I smiled as I threw some more branches onto our fire, Twilight asleep on the other side having drifted off a few hours ago, our prisoner still unconscious or just asleep I couldn't tell which. I stood up and walked over to the opening in the grove that overlooked the camp. This part of the grove only had a slight glow as we had placed the fire someplace that would be difficult to spot from the camp. I crossed my arms and leaned my weight onto my right leg. My sword appearing as I heard something move behind me, eyes narrowing. I spun around sword coming free and up as it landed near the throat of a hooded man. The man's hands went up immediately and he said "Now come on babe, is that any way to welcome me, after I haven't seen you in so long?"

I blinked in surprise and felt my mouth grow into a smile as I said "Axel."

He removed his hood to reveal his bright spikes saying with a cocky grin "In the flesh." I gave a slight laugh and took the sword away from his throat, banishing it back into darkness. He stared at my hand for a moment before saying curiously "Nice trick, you didn't know that when I first met you."

I returned his cocky smirk, leaning back "I didn't know how to do a lot of things when you first met me." My smirk faded slightly and I tilted my head to look up at him curiously asking "So, what have you been up to since I saw you last?"

He shrugged "This and that."

I gave an amused smile and raised both eyebrows saying "That was a very non-committal answer." He smiled and shrugged again, my eyes softened and I gave him a gentle smile "It's good to see you again." He scratched the back of his head for a moment embarrassed, my smile grew teasing and I leaned forward peering at his face. He leaned back slightly and I poked his cheek asking "Are you blushing?"

He turned even more red as he backed up saying defensively "I am not." My shoulders shook in silent laughter not wanting to wake Twilight up.

He sighed as I calmed down; taking in a calming breath saying after a moment "I learned something interesting while I've traveled…" I blinked and watched as his eyes cloud over in what looked like apprehension before continuing "… I'm a magnet for Heartless, not Shadows they go after my friend Twilight. Assault Riders, Air Pirates, all of the stronger ones come after me it's annoying!" His eyes lost their apprehension and he chuckled quietly. I smiled before covering my mouth to hide a yawn, rubbing my arms slightly for warmth. I looked back down at the imperial camp, still rubbing my arms when I felt warmth on my back. I blinked and turned around curious. Axel held his palm out flames flickering above it throwing off heat. I smiled wryly and moved over to the source of the warmth. I smiled up at him causing him to look away blushing and my smile changed into one of amusement.

I yawned again and felt my eyelids getting heavier; he looked over asking "You okay?"

I nodded and covered another yawn answering simply "Just tired."

He blinked and jerked a thumb back at the fire Twilight and I had made saying "Than go to sleep."

I shook my head and explained "Someone's gotta keep watch."

He gave me a 'oh come on' look and said "Let me guess you volunteered yourself because your friend went to sleep before you could make a plan."

I stared up at him before I dropped down onto the ground, stifling my laughter as best I could _AXEL IN OUR BRAINS!!_(A/N: It's an inside joke guys sorry) leaving Axel very confused as he stared down at me. He crouched down in front of me as I nodded frantically as an answer to his question.

It took a few minutes but I was finally starting to calm down when he helped me up, with a sigh saying "Sometimes I wonder about you."

I grinned and asked "Who doesn't?"

He shook his head with an amused smirk pushing me towards the campfire ordering "You. Sleep. Now."

I chuckled before saying "Alright, alright already Onii-san." He stared at me confused as I settled down on the ground facing the campfire. He looked up at the sky and gave a quiet smile of his own as the fire died down.

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A/N: After this chapter the updates might be a little more sporadic. I'll try as hard as I can to keep on schedule but unfortunately I can't promise that I'll be able to.


	9. Hey Water Sprite

Hey everyone. Well I decided to update early 'cause tomorrow is going to busy as hell and Saturday I'm going to be in a car all day. As stated before the updates will, unfortunately, be a little bit more sporadic but hopefully I'll keep at least close to my schedule. Shout outs to: Crimson Fox(thanks again for the review and the add), purplekitsune-chan, and Anexi. You guys really have no idea how happy I am to get feedback from you.

Disclaimer: Own? Me? Nope.

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Chapter 9: Hey water sprite

I woke up to the sun again, glancing around I saw that Axel had left and though I don't know how I knew, it had been fairly recently too. _He stayed the entire night?! _I looked at the boulder where the soldier had been to see him gone._ And he took our "prisoner" with him._ I looked over at Twilight and moved over to her, shaking her shoulder slightly to wake her up. She mumbled something and rolled over making me frown.

I leaned down and whacked the top of her head causing her to jerk upright yelling "KILLER WAFFELS!!" I had jumped back to avoid getting hit in the head and was now staring at her with a 'WTF' face as I leaned on my hands.

I shook my head, sighed, and stood up saying "I don't even want to know."

She stretched her arms above her head and muttered "Why are we up so early anyways?"

I looked back at her and moved over to the opening in the grove, pointing at the four figures running in one direction explaining "Because Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Ping have their first mission."

She moved up to stand behind me, rubbing sleep out of her eyes asking "Where are they headed?"

I turned and started to run through the grove, calling back to her "Looks like they're headed to the Checkpoint! Let's go!"

She jogged up behind me complaining "Aw, couldn't we have had breakfast first?" I laughed as I took a quick turn, skirting the outside of the camp. She moved up next to me, giving a sly smirk saying "You sure seem to be in a good mood this morning."

I glanced over at her as she stared at me as we ran and said "You keep staring at me; you're going to end up falling down." She opened her mouth to protest but immediately fell down; I turned stopping to say "Told ya so."

Her head snapped up with her yelling "You planned that, didn't you?"

I blinked and asked "Now why in the world would I have to **plan** for you to be clumsy?" She made a slight noise of protest as she stood up, running to catch up with me. By the time we made it to the checkpoint the others were already fighting the Heartless. My sword appeared in my hand, unsheathing with a ring of metal on metal. I jumped and skewered a Nightwalker in the process. Sora looked around as I landed low, rushing forward and slicing the legs of an Assault Rider immobilizing them, Donald casting thunder making it vanish. I looked around and saw Twilight finish off one of the many Heartless swarming her. I slapped a palm to my head as she almost skewered her foot, before going over to help her. It didn't take long for all of to clear out all of the Heartless in the area. I placed a hand on my hip; sword held loose in my hand before I gave a two finger salute to Sora, as Donald and Twilight healed everybody, asking "Are we late?"

The brunette gave a wide smile and shook his head saying "Nope. Right on time." I nodded and jolted straight, eyes wide as a cool sensation washed over my entire body.

I looked over at Twilight who was casting cure on me and sighed "Warning, next time please." She just grinned before moving on to Sora who had taken far more damage than I had.

The brunette looked up at me saying "We should head back to camp and report to the Captain."

I nodded asking "Do you think you'll have another mission today?"

The boy shrugged, as Donald, Goofy, and Ping walked over to stand next to him, and said "I don't know. It's possible I guess but I think he's limiting it to one mission a day, so we might be here a while."

I nodded saying "I can understand that." The four of them ran off waving back to Twilight and me who watched for a moment before turning back to each other with me saying "Well that was boring."

She nodded and yawned "We should have stayed back at the grove and had breakfast." I chuckled and shook my head at the blonde.

Starting to walk off I said "Than let's go eat."

She ran off in front of me with a "Yipee!" tripping a few feet ahead of me. I shook my head with an amused smirk and stepped over her. Twilight stood up and brushed herself off before running to catch up with me. We made it back to the grove with no problem but my eyes narrowed as I heard shouts in the distance.

I moved over to the opening that overlooked the imperial camp, I looked back at Twilight and said "They had to clear out the Heartless from the camp, that's two missions today. They should only have the summit mission left and then the village and the attack on the mountain." She nodded and was pulling out food from a pack we had taken off of the gummi ship. I dropped down Indian style next to her asking "So, what shall we do today?"

She looked over at me, handing me an apple, she shrugged as she said "Well, we could always clear out more Heartless."

I nodded and propped my head on my hand, elbow on my thigh sighing "I guess." I laid back onto the ground, staring up at the sky.

I looked over at Twilight as she went "Soooo…"

I blinked and asked "So, what?"

She grinned down at me asking "So, what has you so happy today?"

I sat up slightly; leaning on my elbows confused and asked "What?"

She rolled her eyes answering my question with a question "What happened last night that has made you so happy this morning?"

I stared at her for a moment before continuing the line of questioning "What makes you think that something happened last night?"

She stared at me and explained monotonously "You're peppy this morning you're never peppy in the morning. It's, usually, like trying to talk to a zombie."

My eye twitched at the zombie thing but I sighed "You're never going to stop bugging me until I tell you, are you?"

Her grin widened and she answered happily "Nope."

I sighed before deciding to give her a small explanation "Axel showed up last night."

I jerked back as the blonde 'squeed!' and exclaimed "One of your favorite red heads!"

I pushed her lightly muttering "Shut up." I laid back down, placing an arm behind my head the other resting comfortably on my stomach, staring at the sky. I heard the girl next to me give a sigh and she moved over to the opening in the grove.

I blinked as I heard her say "Hey. I think their done with the camp mission now." I stood up and moved to stand next to her silently; she glanced over at me, jumping slightly in surprise, as I stared at the camp quietly.

I crossed my arms saying quietly "It looks like they're going to train now."

She blinked at me asking "How can you tell?"

I pointed to where all of the soldiers were lining up into a formation with her eyes following the direction of my finger as I said "See how they're lining up, it's a training formation."

She narrowed her eyes to squint at the camp asking "How do you know what a training formation looks like?"

I dropped my hand, shoving it in my coat pocket as I said "War buff, remember." Her mouth formed an 'oh' as I turned around. My eyes narrowed as I heard a warping sound and felt a pull form the darkness. Twilight turned around and gasped as she saw a portal forming behind us. I reached over and grabbed Twilight who was about to bolt, eyes watching as a man stepped out of it. The hooded organization member looked around as the portal vanished from behind him, his eyes landing on us causing him to jump back in surprise, arms flailing slightly. I relaxed and smiled as the hooded man tried to regain his composure.

He seemed to look around slightly before pulling off his hood and saying cheerfully "Hi!" My smile widened as I looked at Twilight out of the corner of my eye as she was staring at the dishwater blonde.

I turned back to the man with the mullet and gave a pleasant grin while saying "Hi." He scratched the bridge of his nose for a moment as if trying to remember something.

He sighed and dug into one of his pockets, pulling out a cue card reading it. "Bring back the Users of Light and Dark. If they do not come peacefully than bring them back by force." Twilight's eyes narrowed and while my grin remained the same my eyes took a more serious look for a moment before they sparkled in amusement as the man turned around, leaning down and rubbing his forehead. I listened as he muttered "Right. Did they ever pick the wrong guy for this one." He turned around to face us again and asked "Would you two know the Users of light or dark?" We pointed at each other simultaneously making Demyx grimace slightly. He scratched the back of his head and asked "Well would the two of you come with me?" Twilight shook her head vigorously and I simply gave a wolfish grin and crossed my arms, amusement still clear in my eyes. He blinked and asked "Which one is which, anyways?"

I blinked and pointed at myself as Twilight seemed unable to speak at the moment saying "I'm darkness…" I pointed at Twilight saying "She's light." He nodded and I scratched the back of my head as I asked "We were about to eat, you want something?"

Twilight's mouth dropped open exclaiming "He's going to kidnap us and you're offering him breakfast?!!"

I looked over at her and shrugged replying "Why not? Besides I'm hungry." I walked forward and moved past Demyx who looked just as dumbstruck as Twilight at my offer.

He turned to the other girl asking "Is she always so, so … like that?"

I called back to Twilight "Hey! What do you want?"

She ran forward to stand next to me Demyx forgotten for the moment yelling "I want waffles."

I blinked and felt my mouth twitch into a smile as I teased "Are you sure they won't be killer waffles."

She gave my shoulder a slight push muttering "Oh, shut up."

I chuckled and turned back to Demyx calling "Hey Demy! You want waffles?"

The man having been staring at the two of us before he blinked and grinned calling back "Sure!" not even questioning how I knew his name. As I began cooking breakfast, Demyx sat across form us in the other side of the fire. The waffles didn't take long and soon the three of us were eating. I watched Demyx from the other side of the fire as he ate and sighed slightly after I finished.

"That was good!"

I looked back at the two who were staring at each other in shock at saying something simultaneously before I turned to Demyx saying "Ookaay. Back to the more important topic of just how do you plan on kidnapping the two of us?"

The blonde man gave a slight cough and asked "Are you sure you two won't come with me willingly?" We both nodded and he sighed before reaching over to grab Twilight's arm.

I blinked as I watched the girl squirm as she tried to get out his grasp, yelling "Let me go! You…. You….You water sprite!!"

I gave her a 'WTF' look and asked "Have you been watching Saiyuki?"

She stared at me in shock before yelling "You're not helping!"

I shrugged before saying "I'm sure you can get out of this one on your own."

She shook Demyx off, who just stared after her, as she stormed after me yelling "You're a really big help! You know that! I'm about to be kidnapped and you don't even try to stop the kidnapper!"

I called back to her as I slung the pack back onto the gummi ship "Well I was right, wasn't I ?"

She stopped confused asking "Right? About what?"

I turned back to her as the gummi ship vanished from view again saying "That you would be able to get away on your own."

Her mouth dropped down and she stuttered "Th-that's not the point!"

I walked past her with a small smile as I said "Actually I think it is." As I made my way back to our camp I noticed that Demy had left though I didn't feel any trace of darkness from a portal. My eyes narrowed _he's around here somewhere_.

I felt Twilight come up behind me as I looked around, she asked "Where'd he go?"

I shrugged answering "I don't know."

I sighed and turned toward her with a bored look asking "Shall we wander around?"

She smiled and replied enthusiastically "'Kay!"

We started to walk out of the grove when I said "Let's go for a record and see how long it takes for you to trip."

Her mouth dropped in astonishment saying "Hey, that's not nice."

I looked over at her, smirked and winked as I said "I'm just messing with ya."

* * *

Night had fallen by the time we got back to the grove, we had discovered a small town and Twilight had dragged me all over the place. I had ended up buying some supplies but the item that I was most happy about was a weapon. It was 14 5/8" Dragon Flame Bowie. It had a wire wrapped handle with a dragon shaped guard as well as flames running the length of the blade. I sheathed it behind my back in a plain black metal sheath that had a silver collar and yin yang symbol on it. Twilight looked over at me as I radiated happiness, shaking her head as she said "You and weapons, if ever you're down I know what to buy you to cheer you up." My grin widened as I settled down and set up the fire pit, Twilight looked at our dwindling supply of fire wood and started to walk off saying "You start the fire, I'm going to get more fire wood."

She vanished before I had the chance to protest I rolled my eyes and muttered "Yes Twilight let us have the girl who hasn't learned any magic start the fire. Very smart of you." I blinked as I heard a warping sound and the wood caught on fire, I looked around, a familiar red head catching my eye. I gave a bemused smirk and said "Ya' know you're very useful to have around."

Axel snorted and moved to stand next to me asking "Where's your friend?"

I looked up at the taller man explaining "She's off getting fire wood." Axel nodded and sat down on one of the boulders watching me as I said "We met Demyx today."

His expression changed to amusement as he asked "Really? And what did he want?"

I yawned answering "Something about kidnapping the User of Darkness and Light." I blinked as Axel's expression changed, my eyes narrowing slightly asking "What?"

He glanced up at me before standing up to cross his arms and pace explaining "If they sent Demyx to come and kidnap the two of you than that means that they know."

I shrugged saying "I wouldn't worry too much about it."

He turned to face me quickly and growled "Not worry about it?! The Organization sent someone to kidnap you and you say 'not to worry about it'! Are you nuts?! When Demyx fails they'll send someone who can actually complete a mission!"

My face had taken a neutral expression as I watched him, standing up and placing a hand on his arm, causing him to stop and look down at me, I gave him a small smile as I said "We'll deal with that when it comes, until then I'm not going to worry and become paranoid about it." He watched me carefully as my blue eyes stared back up into his own emerald green orbs. He sighed and slumped slightly before nodding. My eyes, suddenly serious, flicked to the side, head lowering slightly as I felt someone watching us. _Twilight…no it's not her, it's not one of the guys either. Is it Demy?_ Axel watched me as I suddenly turned around and sprinted towards something in the bamboo. There was a muffled yelp and a thump, than someone protesting as I dragged them into the fire light. Axel's eyes narrowed as he saw me dragging Demyx back, his head in a choke hold.

Demyx's eyes widened as he spotted Axel, he opened his mouth to say something but Axel grabbed him by the lapels and brought him close to his face growling "If you tell the Organization anything, I will make you regret it!" The water elemental nodded quickly as the fire elemental pushed him onto the boulder. I glanced over at Axel before sitting down, my back to the fire as I watched the two of them.

There was a tense moment before we all jumped as Twilight said "Hey, Ghost! I got the firewood…" The girl trailed off as all three of us turned to look at her, branches in her arms. She blinked and sighed "Do I even want to know?" I laughed and turned back to the other two who were staring at us as if we were nuts.

Axel glanced down at me commenting "Your friend is nuts. She sees two members of the Organization and she doesn't freak out."

I blinked as Twilight gave an indigent "Hey!"

I looked back up at Axel and asked "Why would she freak out? She already knows about you and…. Demyx you're very bad at sneaking away so you can stop trying." Axel whipped around to see Demy frozen in mid-step, and turning slowly to look back at the three of us nervously. I sighed again "Twilight…"

She smiled and got up saying "On it." She moved over to stand next to him, grabbing his arm she pulled him over to the fire and sat him down next to her.

Axel sighed and sat down next to me eyeing the blonde man suspiciously growling out "Why shouldn't I just evaporate his ass right now?"

I looked up at him and gave an amused smile, as Demyx 'eeped' and Twilight sent Axel death glares, saying "One I think Twilight would kill you before you had the chance and two, he might be useful in the future better to keep him alive than to draw suspicion."

The red head blinked down at me asking "Than what do you suggest we do with him?"

I shrugged saying "We'll deal with that in the morning." I shifted slightly, reaching behind me to adjust my knife as it was digging into my lower back uncomfortably. Axel watched curiously as I pulled the blade, sheath and all, out to set it next to me in easy reach. I blinked as an arm came into my view as Axel grabbed the blade and looked at it. I yawned and glanced over at Twilight who had already fallen asleep, with Demyx drifting off to sleep, a smile graced my face _they would make a cute couple_.

I glanced up as Axel placed the blade onto my lap, he looked at me and sighed, jerking his head at the now sleeping water elemental stating "You're planning on letting him go in the morning aren't you?" I blinked my smile vanishing and my eyes becoming guarded as I nodded. He sighed again and propped his head on his hand, leaning towards the fire slightly and staring at it. A few moments went by in a tense silence; he glanced at me as my eyes had clouded over, flicking back and forth watching something invisible play across the air. He could tell I was deep in thought but he didn't know about what. He waved a hand as if beckoning and a strand of fire drifted from the fire pit stopping only when it reached above his hand. He stared at it for a moment until he glanced over at me again. I was watching the fire above his hand with a small smile, he smiled and said "You do what you think is best with Demyx." I blinked and looked up at him, dragging my eyes away from the fire that flickered above his hand. My smile widened and the guarded look that my eyes had contained left. His smile brightened when he noticed this. I yawned again as he banished the fire from his hand. He stiffened slightly when he felt my head on his shoulder, he blinked rapidly and turned red "Huh?" He looked down at me to see that I had fallen asleep, his expression softening as he let me sleep.

* * *

Twilight blinked groggily as she felt a weight rest on her arm and looked around at the dark grove. Ghost was asleep on the ground her back against Axel's chest, one of his arms draped over her waist. Twilight grinned knowing the embarrassment that would occur in the morning but had a bit more of an immediate concern, Demyx's head on was on her arm and she couldn't move it. Trying to pull her arm out from under the water elemental's head proved to be futile and she soon gave up, going back to sleep. Still unable to move her arm.


	10. What did you do!

Gah, I'm SORRY that this took so long. I know I said the updates would be sporadic but I never wanted it to be like this. I could give you a great long list of excuses ranging from it was my birthday recently, I've been literally glued to my TV watching live coverage of E3(game convention...if you don't have G4 and you've missed the press confrences where they announced everything you can go to G4TV .com/E3 just get rid of the space), to the most prominent the computer that I have at home can't read my files. But on to the shout outs :Miorochi, Zero'slover, amsharp, Yami no Musume, purplekitsune-chan, and Anexi. Thanks for all the reviews and faves guys. By the way Ghost has a bit of a mouth on there so there is some swearing in this chapter...not alot though but some.

Disclaimer: Have never owned. Will never own...except for Ghost and Twilight.

Chapter 10:What did you do?!

It was warm in the morning and I didn't want to get up. I moved closer to the warmth when I felt it move slightly. My eyes shot open and I saw black lining the right side of my vision. I tried to pull up but something held me down. Lifting my head I looked over to see Axel fast asleep, resting peacefully, feeling my face grow hot I slowly looked to see what was holding me in place turning even redder. I tried to pull away again and Axel's arms tightened on my waist. I sighed, gaining control of my face and looked around. Twilight and Demyx weren't up yet either, which I was grateful for, so I looked back at Axel and poked his cheek. He mumbled something but still didn't get up so I poked him again. This time though he opened one eye and looked at me blearily, groggily asking "What?"

I smiled and said "As much as I'm enjoying this I would like to get up at some point." His face contorted in confusion and I pointedly looked down at his arms wrapped around my waist. He released me quickly and backed away as if he had just been burned, turning bright red in the process. I gave a quiet chuckle, placing my knife behind my back, and stood up stretching. Running my hand through my hair I looked over to where the other two were, giving Axel time to gather himself. I ran a finger under my necklace, straightening it out quickly before heading over to the gummi ship.

I looked back when I heard footsteps behind me, slowing down so that Axel could walk next to me. He gave a nervous cough and scratched the back of his head as he said "Um, sorry about that."

I blinked up at him confused asking "About what?" He looked down at me with a slight blush saying "About what… just happened…"

I gave an amused smile deciding to take advantage of the situation and tease him as I said "Oh, that. Don't worry about it, as I said I was enjoying it." He spluttered slightly, going almost as red as his hair while I went into the gummi ship grabbing a pack of food. I tossed it down to him, before jumping and landing next to him. I grabbed the pack and went back to the grove to start breakfast. I set the pack down as Axel threw some branches in the fire pit and lit them on fire. I gave a smile and commented "You really are useful to have around. Did you know that?"

He looked back and gave a cocky smirk as he said "I believe you said something like that before." I moved over to Twilight and lightly kicked her foot, when she didn't respond I leaned over and shook her awake.

She awoke yelling "CUPCAKES!"

I stared at her for a moment before asking "Do you always wake up yelling some random Gir line or is this a new thing for you?" She shrugged and rubbed sleep out of her eyes with the back of her left hand. I moved over to Demyx and gave his shoulder a light shake.

He opened his eyes blearily and asked "What?"

I smiled down at him explaining simply "Breakfast." He shot up causing me to jump back into Axel, who had decided to sit on one of the nearby boulders, tripping and landing on his lap. We both blushed and I quickly got up as the other two stared intently at the frying pan where I had pancakes going. I slumped slightly as I looked at the two of them and said "Staring at them won't make them cook any faster, guys." They both gave me puppy dog looks before turning back to the frying pan. I leaned back slightly and muttered to Axel "Is it just me or is it creepy how similar those two are?"

Axel was staring at them with a slightly freaked out expression and muttered back to me "It's like she's the reincarnation of him." I snorted causing the other two to look back at me in confusion. I moved back to the frying pan and crouched in front of the fire to flip the pancakes over and dish them out. As the others were finishing breakfast I walked over to the opening in the bamboo that over looked the imperial camp.

I glanced back at the fire pit and sighed, as the others watched me with hungry expressions, saying "If you want me to make more than I'm gonna have to go get more fire wood." They all nodded as they started to finish off the last of the pancakes. I rolled my eyes as I walked off grabbing wood as I wandered.

* * *

A few minutes of collecting wood, I turned to head back to the camp. As I drew near I started to smell massive amounts of smoke. Eyes widening I dropped the wood in my arms and ran back to the grove. The frickin' grove was on FIRE!!! "HOLY BLOODY FUCKING SHIT!!!!!!" I looked around quickly, looking for the others before scrambling over to a nearby river. Through shear instinct and desperation I jerked a hand towards it, a large portal appearing in the deepest part of the river. Turning I jerked my other hand back at the burning grove the portal appearing above it dumping the water and putting out the fire. I gasped and sat on the ground, exhausted, staring up at the grove for a minute or so before standing up and heading over there. Glancing over I spotted the other three standing nearby. I moved over there, stopping I placed my hands on my hips, glaring death.

My eyes first landed on Axel, the most obvious suspect, he raised his hands and said "Hey I may be a fire elemental but this one wasn't my fault." I raised an eye brow at him and he gulped nervously and said desperately "It really wasn't me!" I turned my eyes over to the other two who grinned sheepishly.

My eye twitched and I took a deep breath trying to calm down as Demyx tried to explain "This wasn't… I mean, I didn't… RUN!!"

"DEMYX YOU MOVE YOU DIE!!!"

He froze and turned slowly back towards me before going "eep" and hiding behind Axel, pointing at Twilight saying "It was her idea."

Twilight turned to the water mage and gave an indigent "Hey!"

Sensing an extremely dark aura of anger rolling off of me from behind her, she turned slowly and gave a nervous chuckle, I tried to calm down again by taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly with my eyes closed _calm down, calm down, calm down there has to be a logical explanation as to… who the HELL am I kidding this is TWILIGHT DAMMIT!! _I opened my eyes feeling the others watching me cautiously as I asked "Is there a _good_ reason for this?"

Twilight scratched the back of her head saying "Well I thought that maybe I should try cooking…" she trailed off as she noticed I had closed my eyes again.

_Note to self: NEVER let Twilight cook, she could destroy a world...Revision never let Twilight cook unless in The World That Never Was._ I took another deep breath, opening my eyes slowly, before saying through a clenched jaw "This is what we're going to do, Twilight you are to never cook again without my permission. Demyx you are going to put out any of the fires that I missed. Axel you are going to prevent me from _KILLING_ them. DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPT OF NO SIGNAL FIRES GODDAMIT?!!!" At this Axel grabbed me and began to drag me away to cool off as the others went about their business, Twilight helping Demyx out in some way.

* * *

Twilight glanced over at Demyx as he asked while conjuring water out of thin air to put out a small fire nearby "She's really angry isn't she?"

Twilight blinked as she cast a blizzard spell over a different fire and answered simply "Nah, I think we just really freaked her out. She's got too much pride to actually admit that she was scarred out of her brain." Twilight straightened up and grinned at the dishwater blond saying "More than anything she was probably worried more about us than anything, Ghost is like that friends and family always come before anything else." Demyx blinked curiously before turning back to his work watching Twilight out of the corner of his eye trying to figure out this odd girl next to him.

* * *

Axel maneuvered me over to a clearing away from the grove, sitting me on a boulder. I placed my head in one of my hands, rubbing my temples. Axel crouched in front of me trying to catch my eye asking "You okay?"

I gave a slight nod without looking at him before sighing as I said "I think they just shortened my life by ten years." He blinked before leaning back on his heels chuckling. I glanced up at him as he placed a hand on my knee to steady himself.

He turned red slightly taking his hand away and asked "You sure you're okay?"

I gave a small smile and said "Yeah. I just need a minute to get my head together, is all." He nodded and stood up as if to leave, stopping when I motioned with my hand that he was fine. Getting the idea he sat down next to me, keeping an eye on me. He looked down for a moment, his green eyes catching on my hand. I felt him grab my right wrist, his thumb in my palm, and I looked up at him in confusion as he brought my right hand up to his face, inspecting my fingers. He turned away for a moment digging in one of his pockets before producing a Potion. I blinked confused and asked "What's that for?"

He glanced up at me, while popping the cap off with his thumb, saying quietly "You burned your fingers." I glanced over at my right hand pulling it back slightly, his hand still gently wrapped around my wrist, looking at my fingers I noticed the tips of my fingers were burned, skin shiny where they were burned.

I blinked and gave a small laugh before commenting "I can't feel them. Heh, stupid adrenaline." The red head chuckled slightly, pulling my hand back dabbing the liquid on my fingers healing the burns quickly. I winced slightly as the liquid came in contact with the burns; Axel mumbled a quiet apology causing me to look up at him questioningly "Why?"

He stared at me surprised setting the Potion down before turning away and saying "Fire's _my _element and you got hurt by it."

I sighed, giving a gentle smile at the same time saying "There are things you can't control, me getting hurt is one of them. I happen to be a magnet for trouble." I winked as I continued teasingly "You should see all my scars, besides I've been burned before and I still happen to be a pyro. So nothing for you to apologize for." _Though it could be said that my ENTIRE family is a bunch of pyros._

He stood up, releasing my wrist, facing me and giving a cocky grin asking "So you like to play with fire?"

I smirked back up at him, standing up and poking him in the chest before saying teasingly "I happen to love playing with fire." My good mood obviously returned I turned away heading back towards the grove without noticing Axel turning almost as bright as his hair. I glanced back as I heard branches crunching underfoot, seeing Axel I slowed until he was walking next to me. As we entered the grove I noticed Demyx and Twilight sitting on one of the boulders staring at us. I walked past them, Axel stopping by them, and headed towards the now blackened opening in the bamboo. I turned away as I saw no movement heading away from the camp to see that the others were watching me, Demyx had a nervous expression on his face. I gave a wolfish grin and walked over to him, standing in front of him a hand on my hip, he shrank back from me. My grin widened as I said "Now Demyx this is what we're going to do…" He blinked and shrank back further, my grin fading as I watched him continuing "…we are going to let you go…" His face brightened immediately "…on two conditions."

His face fell and the nervousness reappeared as he asked "What conditions?"

I smiled and held up a finger saying "Condition number one, you will tell the Organization nothing about Axel or what transpired here."

He looked up at me asking "And the other condition?"

My face went serious and I crouched in front of him saying "Condition number two, you work for me now."

He stared at me confused and even Axel and Twilight seemed confused by what I had just said as all three of them said "Huh?"

I ignored the other two, grabbing Demyx by the chin and forcing him to look me in the eye, I explained what I meant "You will tell me everything that the Organization has planned, that you know about. I won't ask you to fight them, I won't ask you to do anything but tell me what their thinking, I want to know why they want Twilight and me. You will report to me if possible every night unless something major comes up and you can't leave. Understand?" He nodded, my expression softened and I released him and stood up again, looking down at him as I said "If you don't agree you give me no choice but to hand you over to Axel."

He stared up at me and asked "Will you be telling Roxas?"

I blinked and shook my head answering "No Sora won't know about this." I reached a hand down to him and asked "Do we have an agreement?" He looked at my hand for a moment before looking up at me, he grabbed my hand and I pulled him to his feet.

He nodded slightly saying "Yeah. We have an agreement."

My smile returned and I said "Good. Remember no telling the Organization about this, no point in this agreement if they know about it now, hm? Oh and if you have a mission to come after Sora or Roxas make sure to act like you don't know me or Twilight 'kay." He nodded and I let go his hand, backing up slightly. He summoned a portal and stepped through, my eyes narrowing at the familiar tug that came from it. I looked over at Axel questioningly, he simply shrugged at my silent question. I sighed and looked back at the camp to spot four figures running away from it. I grabbed the food pack, which had strangely enough remained unsigned, and began running calling back "Time to go Twilight! See ya around Axel!" I threw the pack into the gummi ship quickly and turned to head towards the summit. We ran past the guards at the base of the mountain, leaving them behind and very confused as to what just happened. We ran fast so we could catch up to Sora and the others as they were fighting their way up the mountain. We stopped and tried to catch our breath, I was leaning against a cliff side and Twilight was on her knees, both of us gasping for breath. I started laughing and asked "Do you think those guards have any idea what just happened?" Her puzzled expression faded and she started to laugh with me. As soon as we had caught our breath we began to trudge up the mountain. It wasn't long before the two of us heard yelling and fighting ahead of us. We looked at each other before taking off running; turning a corner we spotted Sora and the others. Donald, Goofy, and Ping were trying to keep the Heartless away from Sora as he was trying to knock down a wall of boulders. Twilight whistled and the Assault Riders, plus the guys, turned their attention to us. One immediately charged at me as I summoned my sword. There was a loud clang as my sword and its spear connected. It moved past me and I turned to face it as I called over my shoulder "Hey guys! Sorry we're late we had a few things to take care of!" Sora gave a thumbs up and started to attack the wall again, I smirked and returned my attention to the Heartless in front of me, my sheath vanishing from my left hand. I leaned back slightly my sword moving in front of me. I jumped when it charged me, landing on its back I stabbed through it and moved onto another target as the Assault Rider vanished. My leg swung into the last Nightwalker as Sora finally knocked down the wall. We ran through it and made our way up the mountain with the occasional wall stopping us and the Heartless always popping up. It didn't take long before we spotted the burned down village, Twilight had wrapped her arms around herself to try and stay warm and even I had closed my coat, my eye twitched as I watched Sora _how the hell does he stay warm?! He's in SHORTS! Does he even feel the cold?! _My head whipped around as we heard voices coming up the mountain, I grabbed Twilight and said to Sora "We're gonna head up the mountain some more so we don't get caught by your army buddies." The boy nodded and the two of us ran up the mountain until we turned a corner and couldn't see the village anymore.

Twilight looked over at me and asked "How long before the village gets attacked?"

I shrugged saying "I don't know the time frame in the game is completely different than it is right now. So it may be a while before it gets attacked…" I looked up and saw a figure approaching "… or it might be right now!" I grabbed Twilight's wrist and felt the darkness stir around us, I waved a hand in front of us. The shadows of the mountainside condensed around us hiding us from view. I heard Twilight gasp at the sudden decrease in light and I clapped a hand over her mouth, keeping her silent. _Shit. Shit. SHIT. This isn't good._ We watched as Shan-Yu walked past us and turn the corner. I waved my hand and winced as the darkness receded and light flooded into the space.

Twilight ripped my hand off if her mouth yelling quietly "You could've warned me you were going to go that!"

I was looking at my hand before looking over at her exclaiming "I couldn't have warned you because I didn't know I was going to do that either!" She blinked and her mouth formed an 'oh'. I turned back to where Shan-Yu had disappeared and started to walk in that direction.

Twilight grabbed my arm and hissed "What do you think you're doing?! The big bad went that way!"

I looked back at her before raising an eyebrow at the hand holding onto me explaining "The big bad is also not the person that Sora and Ping face yet, they still have to get through that stupid cave."

She released me and scratched the back of her head and said "Oh yeah." I rolled my eyes as we slipped past the soldiers who were wandering around the village. As we made our way through the cave we heard protesting. Twilight and I looked at each other before bolting to where the voices were coming from. I slowed down as I saw Goofy and Donald trying to get through a barrier that blocked their way to Sora and Ping who were quickly becoming surrounded by Heartless. I sped up as my entire body took on a dark aura allowing me to slid through the barrier with ease, I heard Twilight yell something at me but I had already summoned my sword and the larger Heartless, mainly the Assault Riders, began to attack me. Sora glanced over to see what the two larger Heartless were attacking and saw me jumping away as one of them tried to spear me. I swept my sword to the side, the Heartless ducked but didn't see the metal sheath slamming into its head. The blow distracted it long enough for my sword to make a lethal hit causing it to vanish. My sheath vanished and I drew my left hand back darkness condensing in my hand to form an orb, I shoved it forward into the other Assault Rider and it vanished quickly as well.

I looked over to Sora, my eyes widening and yelled "Sora! Look out!" He turned quickly, dispatching the Heartless that had been about to attack him from behind. We quickly finished off the rest of them and the barrier went down allowing the others into the cavern.

I sighed and moved over to Sora and whacked him on the back of his head causing him to yelp and ask "What was that for?!"

I glared at him exclaiming angrily "Never! Never turn your back on the enemy and pay attention! One of these days you're gonna end up dead because of stupid mistakes like that!!" His mouth formed an 'oh' and he scratched the back of his head sheepishly as he saw the worry that tinted my expression. I gave an exasperated sigh and my eyes softened as I said "Come on let's get out of here." He looked up at me and smiled before running ahead. Twilight walked over to me as Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Ping started walking out.

We followed them but Twilight asked as we followed "Weren't you kind of hard on him?"

I glanced over at her and sighed, my shoulders slumping as I expalined "Between you and Sora I have enough stress and worry that I'm almost at an overload."

She blinked and asked "Then why don't you try to relax more?"

My eye twitched slightly but we had reached the outside, I grabbed Twilight as she tried to walk past she looked back at me confused and I pointed towards the summit saying "We are heading up that way."

The blonde nodded and we started to head up when Sora ran up to us yelling "We're going to the summit! That Shan-Yu is going to pay for what he did!" I looked down at the brunette before nodding. The six of us began to run up the mountain to the summit, with the occasional stop because of Heartless.

* * *

It didn't take long before we reached the summit, looking around at nothing but snow. I looked up as I heard wing beats on the air, spotting Shan-Yu's hawk. I followed its path with my eyes to a lone figure on the hill above us. The dark figure stood up and the hawk landed on his shoulder. My mouth dropped open as the Heartless started to mass on the hill, I knew there were going to be lots but it was so much more impressive in person. Sora gave a shocked "whoa!" and Twilight backed up slightly staring at the mass of Heartless. I snapped my jaw close, my sword appearing in my hand, all of us preparing for the fight. We stared up at Shan-Yu as he unsheathed his sword and swung it at us yelling "Attack!"

I grimaced as the mass of Heartless started swarming down on us. The other four charged forward, as I glanced back at Twilight asking "Shall we?" She looked over at me and I gave a reassuring smile, she returned it shakily and nodded.

* * *

As I slashed my way through yet another Rapid Thruster I smiled _64_. I looked over at Sora as he finished the last one off and walked over to Twilight asking "How many ya get?"

She grinned sheathing her sword as she answered "67. You?"

My smile widened as I said "64. Not a bad days work if I say so myself. I wonder how many the others got."

She shrugged saying "Who knows? They probably didn't count."

I snorted quietly and said "I think we watched LotR far too many times."

She laughed saying "Probably." I looked back up at the hill and sighed as I saw Shan-Yu getting ready for a second wave. He gave a yell and began to run down the hill with a much smaller group of Heartless.

I blinked calmly and turned when I heard a voice say "Stand back."

A skinny man with yellow armor said "We'll handle this."

They began to aim a rocket at the charging Shan-Yu but Ping knocked them over with a "Sorry!" She grabbed the rocket, ran a few feet ahead and aimed not at Shan-Yu but at the mountainside. She looked around for a moment before grabbing a protesting Mushu and forcing him to light the rocket. He jumped and landed on the head of the rocket a few seconds before it launched.

The dragon was still on it when it took off towards the mountain with him screaming back at her "You're going the wrong way!!" We watched as there was a slight poof from the mountain before all of the snow started to fall down towards us.

My eyes widened as I watched the snow fall down, Ping going "Yes!"

_HOLY SHIT! This was a great plan until you forgot that we were down here too!!!! _

Sora turned to look behind us and asked astonished "Captain?" I looked back at the man in the red cape striding towards us, eyes narrowing.

I heard Ping get up and yell "Look out!" She ran past us, grabbing the Captain on the way, everyone was passing Sora when Twilight and I snagged the boy's arms and started dragging him with us towards safety. I turned and watched as a wall of white moved past us, banishing my sword before looking around. Ping and the Captain were sitting up from where they had collapsed both of them gasping for breath, the rest of us starting the trek over to them. Now that we were closer to them we sped up noting, well at least some of us did, the distressed female by the Captain.

The girl was staring at the ground as we ran over Sora yelling "Ping! Captain!"

We stopped a few feet away; Goofy relieved said "Oh boy, you're okay!"

The Captain walked forward and accusingly asked "You all knew, didn't you? You knew Ping was really a woman in disguise." Noticing Twilight and I his expression grew angrier as he continued "And you brought two _women_ onto a battlefield. Women are…"

I cut him off voice low, expression icy "You better watch how finish that sentence _boy_ or you won't be having…"

Twilight clapped a hand over my mouth hissing in my ear "Don't insult the man, even if you do have a thing against people like that."

I grabbed her hand and pulled it away growling "His attitude bugs me."

She snorted and said "I think it does a little more than 'bug you' to be honest." The other three stood there guiltily unable to say anything as I glared at the man, holding my tongue.

He turned around to glare at Ping accusingly walking past saying accusingly "I can't believe you lied to me." He stopped a few feet away, his hands on his hips refusing to look at us saying "The punishment for high treason and dishonoring the Army… is death." Mulan turned to face him silently as the guys stared at the Captain too shocked to say anything. He turned his head to look over his shoulder slightly and said "Get out of my sight… now. You're all dismissed."

Sora stared at the man saying quietly "But Captain…"

The older man turned around slightly saying "My debt is repaid." With that he walked away leaving Mulan staring at the ground, Sora ran up to stand next to her as Captain Shang and his troops left. We watched them leave my eyes narrowing on the first two as they walked like zombies.

Mulan sighed, slumping as Mushu appeared on her shoulder saying quietly "Mulan… I blew it." The girl sighed again and pulled off the bulky armor and let her shoulder length hair down.

She turned to us with a smile and said "Thank you, everyone. Sorry I got you in trouble."

Sora shrugged saying "It's no big deal. So Ping… I mean, uh, Mulan… what're you gonna do now?"

She started to walk away heading down the mountain answering over her shoulder "Go back home."

Mushu still walking dejectedly said "You know, your daddy's gonna be steamed as a chicken dumpling."

The girl sighed again Sora grabbed Donald and Goofy, who in return grabbed the two of us, Goofy grabbing Twilight, Donald grabbing me, saying "Relax, we'll take our share of the blame."

We all smiled and nodded at the girl who had turned around to watch our antics smiled relieved and said "Thanks. You're all wonderful friends." We moved to stand in front her Twilight wrapped an arm around my shoulder and leaned there, I looked at her and raised an eyebrow.

She smiled in return and said "Glad to see your bad mood's gone away." I laughed and knocked her away from me, bending down and scooping up some snow I promptly threw it at her. She laughed and dodged it making it hit Sora in the back of the head. We caught each other's eye and started laughing hysterically.

Sora brushed the remaining snow off the back of his head and smirked saying "Oh, you two are so going to get it now." All of us laughed, the tension gone for a moment, as a snowball fight commenced.

* * *

As soon as all of us were soaking wet, cold, and somewhat exhausted we started to head down the mountain. We all stopped when we heard an animalistic yell, looking around we spotted Shan-Yu and a group of Heartless on a ledge below us. Mulan and Sora looked over the edge of the cliff on their knees, Mulan jerking back in surprise exclaiming "Shan-Yu?!"

Sora astounded said "He's alive."

Mulan jerked forward realizing where the Hun leader was headed explaining for the rest of us "He's headed for the Imperial City! We've got to warn Shang!"

Sora nodded and the two of them got to their feet turning to us Twilight said "Well then let's go!" They nodded again and we started running.

* * *

We caught up to the troops quickly as they had just entered the palace walls. We raced past the zombie like soldiers and Mulan shouted "Shang!" The older man stopped and Mulan skidded to a halt next to him and exclaimed "Shan-Yu's alive! He's headed this way!"

Shang placed a hand on his hip looking down at the girl asking "And why should I believe you this time?"

My mouth dropped open and even Twilight looked astonished Sora piping in "But… she's telling you the truth!"

I couldn't hold my tongue anymore and put my two cents in "Why the _hell _would we joke about something like this?!" The Captain looked over at me dumbfounded obviously not used to hearing that kind of language coming out of a woman. Donald stared up at the man contemptuously for a moment before giving a surprised quack and pointing up. Following his finger I spotted Shan-Yu's hawk circling overhead. Shang looked around trying to spot where Shan-Yu his eyes widened when he saw the man on one of the rooftops.

Shang waved his soldiers forward ordering "Guard the palace! Do not let the enemy get anywhere near the Emperor!" He turned around to face the rest of his men when only three ran past him. Looking at the other men he said "That's an order!" I felt my eyes widen when I looked at the zombie like men, they had a dark aura surrounding them, as they stopped in front of the Captain. He stopped when they turned into Nightwalkers. I summoned my sword and Twilight unsheathed her own. We jumped in front of Shang with Mulan and Sora.

Sora didn't even look back at the older man as he said "Captain! We'll secure the courtyard, and you can save the Emperor!"

When the man didn't move Donald yelled jokingly up at him "That's an order!" Shang gave a slight smile, nodding before turning around and running towards the palace. The six of us stood back to back surrounded by Heartless. I gave a sly smile in anticipation and glanced over at Twilight who returned the smile with a grin of her own.

I said "Looks like there's enough for one a piece." She nodded and we lunged simultaneously at different targets. With the six of us splitting the Heartless up like this it didn't take long for us to beat the Heartless in the courtyard.

Mulan looked over at us stating "The Emperor's in danger!"

Sora nodded and said "No time to lose!"

I started to run towards the palace calling back over my shoulder "Then why are we wasting time here?!" The group chased after me. We made it to the palace in time to see Shan-Yu hold a sword to the Emperor's throat and say something that we couldn't hear. He glanced over at us, his eye catching on Mulan who had a worried expression on her face. He glanced at Twilight and me and blinked slowly. Twilight had fear in her eyes and her sword was shaking slightly from nerves while I on the other hand was staring at him with a steady neutral expression and a clenched jaw. The Emperor moved back slightly in surprise as Shang dropped in front of the two of them, hitting Shan-Yu in the chin forcing him back before slamming his elbow into the larger man's chest knocking him down. Taking this opportunity he hustled the Emperor into the palace as two of his soldiers closed the doors behind them. Shan-Yu started to get up but we moved in front of the doors before he could reach them.

Mulan raised her sword up to him saying "It ends now!"

Sora piping in "Right now!" The man straightened up, his hawk landing on his shoulder, and gave a creepy chuckle before emitting a dark aura and giving a creepy laugh. I heard Twilight take a deep breath and move closer to me slightly as he charged at us.

I glanced over at her and said "Twilight…"

She tore her eyes away from the charging man for a second as Sora and the others ran forward asking "Yeah?"

I turned back to the Hun leader and said "Take care of that hawk, would you?"

Sounding slightly relieved I had asked her to do that instead of taking on the creepy, burly man in front of us she answered "Sure." I nodded and ran forward as Sora was knocked away. My sword connected with Shan-Yu's with a large clash of metal on metal, I braced my right foot behind me as he tried to push forward. My eyes narrowed as I got an idea, he continued to push and I decided to try it.

I dropped down and to the left forcing him off balance my sword sweeping to the right to bury itself into his shoulder, I yelled, as I pulled the sword away and moved back to avoid getting chopped to pieces, "Sora! Now!" The boy swung the Keybalde down across the man's shoulders causing him to yell out in pain. He swept his sword over towards me I blocked, but the force he put behind it caused me to be forced back. Shan-Yu stood up and charged me, my eyes widened slightly as I moved out of the way of his sword. I jumped to the side, gathering darkness in my left hand quickly. I dropped to one knee as he sent his sword forward in a straight thrust, my sword over my head horizontally forcing Shan-Yu's blade to angle itself above me. I slammed the orb of darkness into the man's gut causing him to fly backwards in an explosion. I was breathing heavy my left arm resting on top of my left knee as I kneeled on the ground, catching my breath. I looked up as Sora and Mulan charged forward as Shan-Yu got up with a slight wobble. As Sora and Mulan pounded on the guy I looked over to see how Twilight was holding up, and blinked as I watched her chasing after the hawk her sword raised above her head. I felt my mouth twitch into a smile as I forced myself up. Shan-Yu had jumped away from the others holding his stomach; he wobbled for a moment before falling down. I moved over to stand with the others my breathing, still labored but returning to normal. Sora and Mulan turned to each other happily and nodded. I rolled my eyes as Twilight pulled me into a hug laughing.

Mushu jumped around celebrating and yelling "Now that's what I call burning some hunny-bun! Aw, yeah! Mulan's the best! Mulan's the best! No, wait a minute… I'm the best! Mushu's the best! Mushu's the best!" I laughed at the sudden change in what the dragon was saying and turned towards the door where Mulan was yelling through it that it was now safe to come out. The doors slowly opened and Shang and the soldiers walked out swords drawn. I blinked and moved over to a pillar where I leaned against it and slid down until I was sitting.

Twilight looked over at me before turning back to watch the soldiers scurry about looking for more intruders. I heard her move over to me, as my eyes were closed, I opened them and looked up as she asked "You okay?"

I gave a weak smile and nodded saying "That move took more out of me than I thought; I'll be fine in a couple of minutes." She nodded as I closed my eyes again and waited for the soldiers to finish.

* * *

It took a couple of hours where in the mean time I didn't move. Those few unlucky people that disturbed me left quickly as I gave them a tongue lashing that they wouldn't forget in quite some time, exhaustion making my patience thin. The current unlucky person was a servant that had been asked to move me to somewhere else, he had left after I had started threatening him in German, not understanding a word I said but getting the idea that it would be a very bad idea if he stayed. A few minutes later I blinked up as Shang stood in front of me his hands on his hips _oh what does he want already_, I felt worn out, that move had taken more energy than I had thought possible and didn't feel like moving at the moment, he stared down at me as I watched him.

He sighed and shook his head while asking "Do you know how many servants and soldiers you have scared off?"

I blinked and answered simply "24."

He blinked in surprise before turning around and said "C'mon the Emperor has summoned you and your friends." I looked around the pillar, apparently a great deal of people had gathered in the courtyard, sighing I pushed myself up using the pillar as support, moving over to stand next to Twilight who watched me with a worried expression as I stood next to her. I cracked my neck, sighed again and straightened up as the Emperor came forward to address Mulan. The Emperor was an old man with a long white beard and was wearing yellow-orange robes and a funny hat.

He stopped in front of us before speaking "I've heard a great deal about you, Fa Mulan." He paused as the girl walked forward, tucking a strand of hair behind her ears before bowing to him, he continued "You stole your father's armor, ran away from home, impersonated an Imperial soldier. You deceived your commanding officer, shamed the entire Chinese army, and dishonored your family name."

Sora shook his head rapidly; placing his hands on his hips for a moment as he impatiently said "We get the picture…"

The Emperor ignored the brunette by saying "You're a young woman. And in the end…"

I rolled my eyes as he paused momentarily _he sure likes leaving people in suspense, either that or he likes being __**dramatic**__._

He continued "…you have saved us all." With that he bowed to Mulan, she stared at the older man completely speechless. We turn around as the crowd below us in the courtyard began to cheer. We laughed, Donald jumping up and down.

Mulan turned around back to the Emperor saying "Your Excellency!"

The older man didn't even look back as he said "Captain Li?" Shang gave a slight bow before picking up Shan-Yu's sword and presenting it to Mulan. The Emperor explaining "Take this, so the world will know what it is you have done for China."

The girl bowed while saying "Thank you."

The Captain looked on for a moment before speaking up "Mulan."

She turned towards him curious "Yes?"

"Sora."

"Sir."

"Donald." The duck quacked in response as the Captain continued "Goofy."

"Yes, sir." He finally turned to Twilight and I "Twilight. Ghost."

Twilight went "Huh?"

I winked and smiled at the man forgiving him for past mistakes his mouth twitched into a smile before he turned to face all of us, bowing slightly saying "Thank you."

The Emperor leaned over to comment to the Captain "'Thank you'? Is that all there is to say, Captain? If you wish to win the heart of Fa Mulan, China's bravest woman, you'll have to be a bit more eloquent than that!" I started laughing at Shang's shocked expression, the Emperor and Mulan joining me.

Sora placed a hand on Mulan's shoulder and asked teasingly "Can I get an autograph?"

She turned around with a smile to the shorter boy saying "Thanks for everything, Sora."

The boy nodded as Mushu walked away from them slightly muttering "Now they GOTTA let me go back to bein' a guardian! They GOTTA!"

Goofy placed a hand on his chin saying "But Mushu, I thought you already WERE a family guardian!"

The dragon stared up at Goofy trying to recover with a nervous laugh "What? Oh, no, no… don't worry about that, that's just real technical. Just for us guardians."

Sora pointed at the dragon and yelled indigently "You tricked us!"

The dragon started backing up slowly saying "No, no no no, see I did… I just, uh…" With that the dragon started to scurry away with Sora on his tail. The dragon shouted back at the boy "You know, I just didn't wanna bog y'all with all a guardian's deeds. See, they're very complex, a lot of fine print. You wouldn't understand." I chuckled quietly and looked over at Mulan when I heard her gasp. She let go of Shan-Yu's sword as it glowed and floated away.

I glanced over at Sora who was still chasing Mushu and called "Sora."

He stooped and looked back at us his eyes landing on the glowing sword with a "Huh?" I looked over at Twilight who's hand had also started glowing again. She looked at it and sighed slightly, having given up on it. Sora summoned his Keyblade and unlocked the next pathway in a flash of light.

Donald stared up at it for a moment before pumping a fist and said excitedly "Okay!"

Goofy looked down at the duck and said "Guess it's about time to be movin' on."

The Emperor realizing that we would be leaving said "You shall be missed."

Sora turned around slightly sad, brushing his nose on the back of his hand he asked hopefully "Is it okay if we come back to visit?"

Mulan nodded saying "Of course!"

Shang moved forward to stand next to her "We will look forward to your return."

Sora grinned and said teasingly "You two play nice!"

I gave a laugh quietly as the two looked at each other before turning away blushing with Shang saying "Whoa…watch it, soldier!" They looked back at each other and Mulan started giggling as Mushu popped up over her shoulder.

She looked at each of us and said "Goodbye, Sora, Donald, Goofy, Twilight, Ghost!" The guys walk down the steps of the Imperial Palace, Twilight gave them a two finger salute before turning to walk down with me as I waved over my shoulder. I sighed as I settled into my seat in the gummi ship, closing my eyes and allowing exhaustion to take over.

* * *


	11. The Cursed Rose

**YAY! There's finally an update, more importantly though I have a beta! Everyone meet Kita Kudai, which is why there's a new style. Due to the fact that I haven't updated in who knows how long, there is a crap load of shout outs to put out. So this time they'll be at the end of the chapter so you all can get to the good stuff. Regular updates shall resume now cause we got Wi-Fi. Also the poll is now closed thank you everyone who voted, you shall know the results next chapter. Alright on to the story. :)**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own KH2, I'll let you know though if I ever achieve that miracle.**

**Chapter 11: The Cursed Rose**

* * *

I woke up a few hours later at the sound of voices arguing. I looked over to see Goofy sitting in Twilight's seat and Twilight in the front arguing with Donald and Sora. Sitting up I looked over at Goofy who was the only one not arguing. Instead he was simply watching them go at it, bickering loudly as the ship cruised along.

"What are they arguing about _this _time?" I asked.

Goofy looked over at me. Surprise was written across his face as he looked at me, obviously he didn't expect to find me awake but it was hard to sleep with the constant noise that the other three were making. I rolled my eyes as Twilight gave a loud squawk when Sora elbowed her in the sides. She rounded on him, pinching him hard.

"Well, Twilight wanted to listen to the radio but they can't choose a channel." Goofy said.

I winced as I heard a synthesizer blare as they picked up an 80's rock station. Sora spun the dial to a country station and Donald moved it over to a classical station. With the way they were going at it, they were going to break it before they decided to settle on a station. Then we'd be left with no music at all. I looked back over at Goofy.

"How long have they been going at this?"

He placed a hand on his chin for a moment, thinking and rubbing his chin from time to time. He hummed a soft 'hmm' as he thought. I shook my head, disappointed in him and slightly agitated by all the noise surrounding me. I knew I was going to suffer from a headache sooner or later. He shouldn't have to think about it.

"Hm… a couple of hours." He responded.

My mouth dropped open slightly and I shook my head. It was a freaking radio station. It wasn't really a necessity to have music while flying the Gummi, more of a luxury item. It wouldn't do anything against the Heartless. I ran a hand through my hair, taking a deep breath in before exhaling slowly, trying to keep myself calm.

"How long do we have left?" I asked, exasperated.

Goofy scratched his cheek as he thought for a second. I could see him calculating the distance in his eyes. He sighed and looked at me with a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of his neck with his gloved hand. That smile told me I wasn't going to like his answer and I braced myself for his reply. I grimaced, knowing I wouldn't like what I heard.

"I think we've got about six hours left until we reach Beast's Castle." He said, almost regretfully.

I sighed. _I can't handle this for 6 hours_, I told myself. Itook a deep breath and closed my eyes, trying to picture something nice, quiet and peaceful. It was interrupted by a shout from Sora. I opened my eyes and jumped to my feet, nearly hitting Goofy with my hand as my fist swung out, dangerously. I glared at the three of them.

"_Enough_!" I barked.

They jerked around to look back at me shocked, as it was a rare thing for me to raise my voice like that, the only one in the ship to encounter it before had been Twilight. She fidgeted and gave me a nervous smile as my eyes flickered over her and the others. I glared at them slightly though my eyes shone with amusement

"80's are out. I can't stand synthesizers. Country is out because I think if you put that on Sora, Twilight's head will explode. Classical is alright but Donald remember who's driving," I sighed, "You put it on Sora'll fall asleep and crash us into a world. Rock is all that shall be tolerated understand?"

They nodded and whined but finally agreed to my terms. They flipped on a rock station as I went back to sleep. There was a slight smile across my lips as I heard the argument continue quietly the channels still flipping every once in a while. I shook my head before drifting off to a dreamless slumber.

* * *

Over the course of the nine hour trip I woke up three times to stop a fight between Sora and Twilight. The last time I just stayed up because we would be landing in a short period of time. Twilight was back in her seat sulking and staring out the window. She straightened slightly as she looked out before reaching over and grabbing my arm jerking me over to her.

"Look, look!" She cried.

I followed her pointing finger out the window to spot the world we were going to next before patting her head quietly with a patient smile. Sitting back down in my own chair I watched as the boys landed quickly. I opened the door and jumped out, landing I walked a few feet away so that the others wouldn't land on me. I stretched as I looked around at the gloomy gothic castle that we had landed in front of. I looked over as Twilight landed with a thump losing her balance. Goofy stretched out a hand to her and helped her up.

I watched as the guys ran forward to the entrance of the castle Donald and Goofy getting there first, opening the door and running in. Sora was a little slower than the other two and Twilight and I were bringing up the rear, closing the door behind us. We stopped in the entrance hall for a moment and looked around. It was dark and empty with a grand staircase at one end of it and a few side doors.

"Hey, what is this place?" Sora asked.

Sora walked forward towards Donald and Goofy. Donald was still looking around. I glanced around. My eyes took in the rugs and pillars. There were paintings hung on the walls but were faded beyond recognition. A stone staircase led to either side of the castle with large doors in the middle which led to the ballroom.

"It's huge!" Donald proclaimed.

Goofy looked around, also taking in the art and the stones. He placed a hand on his chin, rubbing it ever so slightly before turning to face us. Twilight and I looked at him, meeting his eyes. There was no current sign of danger but one could never be too sure, especially in a place much like this one. It was unexplored territory and therefore dangerous.

"It's sort of gloomy, don't ya think?" Goofy asked.

Twilight nodded vigorously as I continued to look around, walking a little further in past Goofy and Donald. She hung close to me, as if she were a little nervous. Sora watched me for a moment. I could feel his eyes following me but I ignored him, pretending I didn't notice him. Then he looked away, looking – once again – to the castle walls.

"I wonder who lives here." Sora murmured.

There was a loud roar that answered him. We all jumped in surprise and for some of us fear. Twilight gave a light yelp. She was gripping my arm in a death grip with her eyes wide, as the loud roar echoed throughout the castle halls. The guys looked around for a moment before Goofy turned towards Sora.

"Hey, does anybody else recognize that?" Goofy asked.

Sora crossed his arms for a moment before another roar ripped through the castle causing Twilight's grip to tighten. I winced, hoping she wouldn't cut off circulation to my arm. I might need it later when fighting Heartless and Nobodies since I was sure we'd run into them on about every world we'd go to. I sighed.

"Nice grip." I muttered.

She looked up at me, not quite understanding what I meant. Then she looked down to her white knuckled grip on my arm, releasing me with a sheepish smile. She rubbed the back of her neck while I rubbed the spot she had gripped. If I was lucky there wouldn't be a bruise but I doubted my luck was that good.

"Hey! That's the Beast!" Sora exclaimed excitedly.

I flexed my arm to get circulation going again while turning to look over at Sora. Twilight was scratching her head and smiling apologetically. Donald nodded, agreeing with Sora. A smile lit the faces of the three boys. Twilight and I were lost, not knowing who they were talking about so we just decided to let them explain later.

"Yeah!" Donald said.

"Maybe we should check up on him." Goofy suggested.

I watched Sora curiously as his eyes followed something for a moment. My eyes sought the moving creature as well. I narrowed them, hardly able to make out the movements in the shadows until I saw two perfectly circular yellow eyes moving around on the ground. I sneered at the creature, feeling the loathing burning in my chest.

"Look!" Sora cried.

His cry called forth the attention of the others. They turned to see a Shadow scurrying across the ground. It was as if it had hope that it wasn't caught. We watched it for a moment before it entered into a room with light streaming out of the doorway. For a moment the light flickered but then it went back to being as bright as ever.

"C'mon!" Donald cried.

Donald charged forward with a battle cry, holding his staff in his hands, ready to attack the enemy that was the Heartless. All of us followed close behind heading into the room that the Heartless had entered. I looked down and watched as Donald poked his head around the door looking for the Shadow muttering

"Where did it go?" Donald muttered.

We moved into the room and looked around, Donald gave a curious quake that caught my attention and watched as he moved over to a table where a single rose in a glass case sat upon a table. He held his arms up as if to pick the case up when a Shadow materialized in front of him, making him jump back in surprise.

"Found it." Donald and Twilight said in unison.

I looked around as Shadows surrounded us, summoning my blade. I tried to keep close to Twilight, as the guys ran around fighting off the other Shadows, the stupid things kept swarming her and I seemed to act as a deterrent of some sort. After a while I noticed that all of us had been backed up to the table with the rose on it. _'Tch. Is this never gonna end?' _I thought as I saw Sora out of the corner of my eye straighten up.

"Aw, c'mon. Enough already." He groaned.

Donald frustrated yelled "Somebody help us!"

My head jerked up as the door slammed open revealing the Beast. The guys seemed happy to see him as he walked down the stairs he stopped momentarily the Heartless taking this opportunity to attack him. He hit them out of the air and into the walls causing them to instantly disappear. The Beast looked around for a moment before heading towards the table with the rose. Sora raised his hand as if waiting for a high five.

"Just in time!" He told the Beast.

He hit Sora with enough force to knock him off his feet and he would have landed a lot farther away from his original position if I hadn't been in the way. I grunted as his back connected with my chest, just barely managing to keep my balance, one hand gripping his elbow the other wrapped around him, as the boy steadied himself. Yet in those few seconds of being air born the Beast had also hit Donald and Goofy. They connected with Twilight but she was knocked down under the two of them.

We watched as the Beast walked past us and carefully picked up the glass case which contained the rose. All of us watched as he left with rose, ignoring all of us, I let Sora go as the others got up. There was a hurt look on his face as he stared at the door. Of all reactions he probably wasn't expecting that one from the 'Beast.'

"You okay?" I asked.

He nodded and moved to the center of the room with the others as Donald rubbed his head and Goofy helped Twilight up for the second time today. Goofy looked out the door worry written on his face. Donald grumbled, getting back to his feet as he glared at the door coldly, almost as if he were waiting for it to burst into flames under the heat of his glare.

"Gee, do ya think he maybe forgot who we are?" Goofy asked.

"With this many Heartless around, something must be up." Sora said.

"Why'd he have to do that?" Donald asked.

Donald slightly angry stomped his foot as Sora continued to stare after the Beast. We simply shrugged and left the room. I looked back when I saw that Donald had stopped and was staring up at the staircases that lead up to the East Wing. Sora turned, catching Donald staring at something or another above their heads.

"What is it?" Sora questioned.

"I just know I saw a lady at the top of those stairs…"

Donald shook his head slightly. They all looked up at the staircase as I glanced around feeling a slight tug from the darkness but turned back to the boys, deciding to ignore it. But I kept it in mind, not being completely reckless. Something dark had arrived in the castle and unfortunately I knew exactly what it was. I was slightly uneasy but played it off in front of everyone else.

"Well… if the Beast is here in the castle, that lady musta been Belle, right?" Goofy said.

I tilted my head to the side as Sora nodded, waiting for him to put two and two together. I shook my head as he thought for a few seconds longer. He was a real handful sometimes and I wondered how badly I was going to worry over him as things progressed. Twilight kept me on my toes without even trying to. How was I to worry over Sora as well?

"Yeah, maybe so. Belle might know what's happened to the Beast, too." Sora said.

"C'mon! Let's go find her!" Goofy suggested.

Goofy brightened slightly at the thought of this. We all nodded and started running up the stairs taking a right to head up to the East Wing. Looking around at the gloomy hallway we made our way to the end of it with a door on the right and a window straight ahead. Sora turned around slightly placing a finger to his lips.

"Shhh!" He hissed.

Goofy clasped his hands over his mouth with a muffled 'Gwarsh!' The three sneak closer to the door as I rolled my eyes at them. Twilight and I simply walked over to them as they tip-toed their way to the door. From our side of the door we could hear the muffled voice of an older woman, fretting over something or another.

"What am I going to do?"

Sora pointed at the door silently and Donald nodded backing a few feet away from the door. Twilight and I watched as the duck stared intently at the door, as if willing it to open or to burst into flames, whichever came first. Neither would happen, unless he used magic or just happened to have a key that we could use.

"Okay." Donald said with finality.

Realizing what Donald was about to do a few seconds, Sora reached out his hand to stop him, mere seconds too late. The small duck charged at the door, expecting to break it down regardless of his smaller build and the door's firm and sturdy wood. Twilight winced, expecting Donald to rebound off the door as soon as he hit it.

"Donald!" Sora cried.

Just as he was about to hit the door it opened making Donald land on his face. Twilight and I started laughing, with Twilight leaning against me for support so she could stand up straight as she pointed at Donald's feathered behind pointing up in the air. Slowly Donald pushed himself up and glared around the room, looking for the culprit who opened the door.

"Hey! Who opened the door?!" He squawked indignantly.

"Oh, I'm so happy you're here!"

Upon spotting the girl in the room Donald had no time to react as she reached down and scooped the protesting duck up. She pulled him into a hug that seemed to ruffle his feathers – both literally and rhetorically. He protested his discomfort from the moment her arms were wrapped around him and his feet were off the ground.

"Donald!" She cried.

Then she looked over and spotted us. She was still oblivious to the fact that Donald wanted to be put down. Sora and Goofy waved to her rather sheepishly as Donald continued to struggle. Twilight looked to me, with a look on her face that clearly read,_ 'Well, Donald got himself into this mess so let's see him get out.' _

"Sora! Goofy!" Belle said happily.

"Hiya!" Sora greeted.

Belle turned to Twilight and I. She had perplexity written on her face as she stared at the two new strangers, now standing in her bedroom, accompanying her friends. She was tense and worried as she stared at the two of us. I smiled at her, trying to convey that we meant her no harm. I gave her a small wave and motioned to myself.

"I'm Ghost." I said and then pointing over at Twilight I continued, "She's Twilight. Don't' ask about the names we're weird."

"I'm Belle." She said with a small chuckle.

"Put me down! Put me down!" Donald shouted.

Belle's eyes widened as she finally noticed Donald's struggles. She looked down at him and set him down as his eyes circled around obviously dizzy. Donald finally recovered after a few moments, backing away slightly. He was obviously afraid she'd go and hug him once more. Nearly getting crushed once wasn't something he wanted a repeat of despite how glad he seemed to see Belle once more.

"Where's the Beast?" He asked.

Belle's face dropped slightly and she sighed. Dejection was clearly stated with the slump of her shoulders and the way her arms wrapped around her, hugging herself tightly. Her eyes darkened slightly and she stopped smiling. I grimaced wondering if it had anything to do with the recent Heartless outbreak.

"Oh, he must be in the West Wing. We don't talk like we used to." Bell said.

"Did something happen?" Sora asked.

"Yes. Isn't that why you're here?" Belle asked.

We all looked to Sora who simply shrugged. He obviously had no idea. We had come because it was just another world to search for Heartless, Nobodies, Organization XIII or Sora's friend Riku. It seemed we had only found one of the three but were bound to find the second one if they waited a little while longer.

"Not exactly. But we can still help!" Goofy told her.

"Since we're here and all." Sora said.

Donald nodded agreeing with Goofy and Sora as he looked up at the girl. I leaned against the wall near the door, waiting for a decision to be made. Twilight sighed and made herself comfortable by sitting on the bed. Her feet dangled over the edge as she kicked them back and forth. Belle's bed sheets were safe since not a single speck of dirt got from Twilight's shoes to the lightly colored fabric.

"The Beast won't talk to you?" Twilight questioned.

"He's been acting strange lately. The only ones who might know why are locked in the dungeon. I want to help them, but…" Belle said with a shake of the head.

"Wait a second. Who locked who up?" Sora asked, rather shocked.

I looked over to Twilight, gauging her reaction to this information but she didn't seem to react at all. I noticed her eyes were focused elsewhere. She was staring out the window, glancing out to the bridge. I smiled, knowing what she was thinking. Slowly I tore my eyes away from her and the bridge and looked back to Sora and Belle.

"The Beast locked up his servants." Belle explained.

"But why?" Donald asked confused.

"That's what I don't know." She said.

She shrugged and shook her head sadly. Sora placed a hand on his chin for a moment, pondering for a moment. I could almost see the light bulb appear above his head as his eyes lit up with an idea. I sighed good-naturedly knowing Twilight and I would get dragged along on his joy ride of an idea but a part of me didn't really protest.

"Hmm. Where's this dungeon?" He asked.

"You can get to the undercroft from the West Hall. The dungeon is down there." She told him.

"West Hall. Got it." He said.

"Be careful!" She warned,

Belle watched as Twilight and I turned to leave before Sora. He gave her a thumbs up before he and the guys ran out to catch up to us, heading down the stairs and then up the stairs that lead to the west wing. Looking around I noticed that this hall had far better lighting than the rest of the castle as well as better furnishing. Sora moved in front of me as we walked, leading the way down the empty halls of Beast's castle.

"There should be a way into the undercroft around here…" He murmured.

"What's that doing there?" Twilight asked.

She pointed at a wardrobe that was just sitting there, completely out of place in the hall and the lines of armor. I glanced over at her raising a fine eyebrow. '_You know perfectly well why that's there.'_ I thought with a smirk. She just smiled innocently and shrugged, playing coy as we walked over to it. Sora, however, ran over to the wardrobe and looking behind it.

"Here it is!" He proclaimed.

He promptly started to push it out of the way but the thing woke up. Sora sprang back in surprise when it started moving on its own. His eyes were wide and he held his hand in front of him, ready to summon the Keyblade to knock the wardrobe back if it turned out to be a Heartless or a Nobody in disguise.

"Do you _mind_?" It snapped.

The wardrobe moved back in front of the door and went back to sleep with Sora staring at it surprised. I walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder, leaning down. He looked up at me, with bright blue eyes shining with curiosity. I smiled despite my resolve not to. It was hard not to smile when Sora was well, Sora. Twilight was one of the few who could make it that easy to smile nor could they pull off the cheerful disposition like Sora and Twilight could.

"Move it _very_ slowly. That way it won't wake up and get back in front of the door." I whispered.

He nodded as I backed away, taking my advice he began to push very slowly. When the wardrobe gave any indication that it was waking up he moved away until it fell asleep again. It gave way inch by inch until the door was completely visible and the wardrobe was out of the way. The wardrobe, once completely out of the way, woke up.

"And I was just starting to get comfortable… May I help you?" She complained.

Sora blinked in surprise, obviously not used to the idea of talking furniture. Donald and Goofy also seemed surprised by the talking wardrobe. I would have been surprised, had I not known what was coming. Twilight pulled off a perfect expression of surprise and when the two of us caught one another's eyes we nearly started laughing.

"Huh? What? Oh, right…Belle needs us to go to the dungeon." He said.

"Goodness! You're here to help my friends? Well, why didn't you say so?" The wardrobe asked, excited.

"Er…"

The brunette scratched the back of his head, unsure of what to say to the furniture piece that stood in front of him. He glanced to me, confusion in his eyes. He cocked his head to the side, showing his confusion as he looked at the wardrobe. It was obvious that he wanted me to say something to help him out but I smiled letting him take the lead on this one.

"I'm sorry I startled you. Oh, I used to be human, you know, until the enchantress cast her spell. I was turned into a wardrobe when the prince was turned into a beast." The wardrobe continued not waiting for an answer.

"The prince is the Beast?" Donald asked surprised.

"The Beast is a prince?" Goofy asked at the same time.

Twilight and I looked between them laughing quietly. Twilight had to cover her mouth so that Sora and the others didn't notice we were laughing at them. As we calmed down I cleared my throat to play off our laughter. I shook my head when I saw that Donald and Goofy didn't notice our laughter but couldn't help but smile.

"That's right. Although, his behavior was far from princely at the time." The wardrobe said.

"What's this about a… spell?" Sora asked.

"Well. It was a cold winter's night…" The wardrobe said dramatically.

She leaned forward as she said each word as dramatically as she could. Enthralled by the story, the three boys leaned forward and nodded eagerly. They held their breaths, eagerly waiting for the story of Beast. They would be thoroughly disappointed as she leaned back. A smug smile sat upon her lips as disappointment lit up their eyes.

"And that's enough for now. You can hear the rest when you've rescued the others. It'll give you something to look forward to." She said.

The three boys slumped in dejection as my eyes shone in amusement. A small smile crossed my lips as I watched them. It wasn't hard to find them amusing. I didn't know a single person who hadn't found them funny in the slightest. Twilight giggled softly behind her a hand as she watched the now depressed boy.

"Aww…" Donald sighed.

The wardrobe backed up some more giving us more room to get through. I got a good look at the old wooden door, with the rusty door knob. I could feel a cold draft coming from underneath the door. Twilight glanced over to me, excitement and worry was shining in her eyes and her entire frame seemed to shake as she grinned.

"Hurry, now. The dungeon is damp and chilly. Certainly no place for a clock!" The wardrobe said.

"A clock?" Goofy asked.

"You'll find out soon enough." The wardrobe said mysteriously.

"All right. Let's get going." Sora said with a nod.

With that he pushed the door open to lead us through the damp corridors that lead to the undercroft.

* * *

As we entered the undercroft I noticed a stack of boxes that lead to the second floor on my right and a door with strange carvings in front of us. I summoned my blade as I knew we were going to be attacked fairly soon. Twilight nodded, drawing her own blade, preparing to fight and was just as ready as I was.

"This must be it." Sora said.

I watched as Donald placed his head against the door trying to listen through it, my head jerking up as I saw its eyes flash. Donald looked back at us for a second before jumping back as the entire door began to glow. Donald backed up slowly as the Heartless, appearing to grip the lock, slammed a fist down missing Donald as he ran back to us.

"Uh-oh!" He gasped.

The Heartless slammed their fists together, preparing themselves for a fight. I stepped back as Sora, Donald, and Goofy rushed forward and began to attack it. I grabbed Twilight's shoulder and pulled her back as she was about to rush in. She turned to me confusion plain on her face but she stopped when I gave her a stern look.

"Huh?"

I released her wrist and leaned back against the wall. My sword was held loosely in my right hand. I was ready, patiently waiting for the right moment to attack. Twilight was still confused. She itched to jump in and help Sora beat the Heartless into submission but I was holding her back. I could see her fingers turning white as she gripped her weapon tighter.

"Just wait, if all of us go in now we'd end up hurting someone. We'll wait until it leaves the door, give the guys a breather, and force it back so they can attack it again." I explained.

"Okay."

It didn't take long for the guys to force the Possessor out of the door. Twilight took after it as soon as it was out. I ran forward, skidding around Sora's and slashed my sword sideways against the creature's head. I stopped with my back to Sora and my knees bent ready to attack once again but I knew he was watching me intently. As I straightened I glared at the heartless coldly.

"We'll handle this. You wait for us to force it back." I said to the boy calmly.

"Okay!" Sora said, nodding.

I swung my sword down hard hitting it, the thing fleeing back to the door to form Thresholder again. I moved back to the wall that I had been leaning against previously. Twilight joined me, casually leaning against a box as if we weren't in a battle. I glanced over at her worried for her well being but seeing that she was okay made relief seep into my heart.

"Nice work." I told her.

She smiled and looked back to the fight. We had to force the Possessor back into the door a couple more times but eventually Thresholder was defeated. It turned to stone as the Possessor hovered its form wobbly, vanishing in the air. Looking over at the door I saw the statues of Thresholder vanish leaving pallid marks on the door where it used to be. I looked back at the guys for a moment before walking over to the doors and giving them a light push.

"You think the dungeon's past this door?" Donald asked.

"C'mon, we gotta set those servants free!" Goofy said.

"He's right. Let's go." Sora said.

I turned back to the door and pushed it open. I looked around as we entered and saw the normal household items sitting on the chairs. I smiled, knowing they were the transformed servants that we were looking for. Sora however didn't have Twilight's or my own knowledge about the status of the servants.

"There's nobody here." Sora said.

"You mean there's nobody to rescue?" Donald asked.

I moved over to one of the chairs as Sora sighed. With a smile I picked up the clock gently before sitting on the chair with it resting on my lap. I looked at it, almost as if admiring the inner mechanisms of the clock sitting in my lap. Then I looked up seeing the candlestick move ever so slightly before growing still once more.

"Did someone say 'rescue'?" A heavily accented voice asked.

"Shh! Keep quiet. It might be _them_." The clock in my lap hissed.

"Oh, they look like a nice group of people to me." The teapot said.

"We are nice. We're your friends." Goofy insisted,

Neither Goofy nor Donald had any clue where the voices were coming from but they were deciding to go with it and perhaps find out something about the servants. Sora also had no clue as to where the voices were coming from. Twilight rolled her eyes and shrugging at me unbeknownst to the guys. It was kind of sad to see they hadn't figured it out yet since the wardrobe could talk and we were in a room of furniture.

"Yeah, Belle sent us to find you." Sora said.

The clock was the first to jump down, having walked across my lap a few steps before jumping. The candlestick, teapot, and teacup weren't far behind.

"Wow!" The boys whispered in unison.

I got up from the chair to move over next to Twilight, who was smiling like a fool. Sora and the boys crouched in front of them so that they could be closer to eye level. To be polite Twilight and I did the same, smiling as kindly as we could manage. Mrs. Potts smiled at us, as if she knew we meant no harm in being there.

"I'm Sora. Donald. Goofy. Twilight. Ghost." Sora said introducing us.

Sora pointed at the respective person as he said their name. Cogsworth nodded, taking in the information and committing it to memory as he examined us. As soon as Sora finished introducing us Donald ran forward making everyone jump back as he grabbed Cogsworth, the clock, picking him up to examine him. The clock began to protest Donald's rough treatment almost instantly.

"D-don't touch! I-I am self-winding, sir!" Cogsworth cried.

Goofy walked over and leaned down to get a better look as Donald shook Cogsworth to see what would happen. I rolled my eyes at the two of them. I noticed that Twilight had gently picked up Chip with a childish grin on her face. He was laughing as she looked him over. She was being careful since he was made of glass after all.

"I'm glad you're okay." Sora said to Lumiere.

The candlestick moved back and hopped onto the chair. There was a solemn look on his face as he thought but then he smiled at Sora, sincerely meaning the grin on his waxy lips. The flames of each candle were burning brighter as if to show just how happy the candle man really was. It was saddening and lightening at the same time and I felt bad for it.

"It is we who are overjoyed to see you!" Lumiere insisted.

"Did somebody put a spell on you guys, too?" Goofy asked.

All the while Donald continued to mess with Cogsworth. The duck tickled Cogsworth's foot and pulled his arm. I rolled my eyes, as Twilight handed Chip over to Sora who began looking the small cup over just as Twilight had done but he set Chip to the ground so he wouldn't get damaged. '_No Goofy they were born as talking household items,'_ I thought, rather annoyed. Cogsworth finally managed to pull his arm out of Donald's grasp.

"Yes, that's right! You've heard! It was the enchantress." Cogsworth said.

Lumiere crossed his… arms and looked down. Twilight and I nodded, giving our sympathies but knowing the story had a happy ending. It was a little more heartening to know that they would be cured of the curse and once again be human but just not now. They had to be patient and wait, just a little longer.

"It seems so long ago…" Lumiere said remorsefully.

"It was a cold winter's night… An old beggar woman came to the castle, and asked for shelter." Mrs. Potts continued.

Donald opened the window on the front on Cogsworth's chest, ignoring the look of distain on the clock's face. Nevertheless the clock sighed, knowing he probably couldn't stop Donald if he tried. He looked weary of the same old song and dance. Obviously people couldn't get over the fact that furniture could talk.

"But the master of this castle, that is of course, the prince…" Cogsworth said.

He stopped for a moment as Donald played with the pendulum. He glared at the duck coldly before taking the side of the window and slamming it shut, catching Donald's fingers in the door. The duck pulled his hand back, wincing slightly. Then a sheepish smile crossed his bill as he looked at the rather annoyed clock in his hands.

"Stop that! Put me down this instant!" Cogsworth demanded.

The duck walked over and placed him on an empty chair while the clock murmured a murmured, 'Thank you!' before dusting himself off slightly and clearing his throat. Twilight looked at me, with a Cheshire Cat-like smile on her lips. I shook my head unable to deny the small quirk of my own. But then we stopped, understanding this was supposed to be a serious moment.

"The master turned her away. All because of her, ahem, meager appearance." He continued.

"That's awful!" Goofy said from behind his hand.

"Oui. He was a spoiled prince, so selfish and… how shall I say… cruel." Lumiere said with a nod.

"Lumiere!" Cogsworth yelled out in shock

I hid an amused smile behind my hand, knowing that the two could really go at it if they felt like it. But now was not the time to fight. Mrs. Potts ignored the two of them. It was a task which I found took a lot of practice or perhaps a lot of patience, both of which I had had long practice due to a friend I had back home. Then I decided it was a mixture of both that allowed her to do so.

"The old woman warned our master not to be deceived by appearances… Still, he would not take her in." Mrs. Potts said.

"Then the old woman's ugliness melted away to reveal a beautiful enchantress." Cogsworth said, turning away from Lumiere.

"She turned the Prince into a beast, a shape she thought fitting for his cold heart." Mrs. Potts continued.

I rolled my eyes as Cogsworth interrupted the teapot woman once again. It was rude to interrupt someone and it bothered me ever so slightly that he had done so freely. I didn't say anything but I still shook my head disapprovingly, but the others mistook it for my displeasure about the story. Twilight knew a little better than the others did.

"And to further punish him, everyone in the castle was enchanted, too." Cogsworth said.

"Wow… that's quite a story." Sora said with a shake of the head.

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Goofy asked.

"Let's get the enchantress!" Donald said brashly.

"Why?" Twilight and I asked in unison.

He turned to me his mouth hanging open in disbelief before turning to Mrs. Potts. He was horrified at the idea of Twilight and I not wanting to help the servants. It wasn't that we didn't want to help. It was more like we couldn't. You just can't make someone fall in love faster.

"Oh no, dears." Mrs. Potts said.

"We already know what needs to be done, but with the master out of sorts…" Lumiere explained.

"He sure was acting weird." Sora agreed.

"It's almost as if he's forgotten how to trust others." Mrs. Potts said concerned.

Cogsworth glanced over at her panic tracing his very frame. The other furniture pieces/servants looked at him, startled but equally worried.

"You don't suppose he's been turned into a Heartless, do you?" Cogsworth asked.

Both Twilight and I shook our heads at that, knowing full well that the Beast wouldn't get turned into a Heartless. It seemed to reassure the clock slightly and he relaxed, if just by a little bit. So did the other furniture pieces but Sora, Donald and Goofy were alarmed by the mere suggestion of Heartless interaction.

"Heartless?!" The boys cried in surprise.

"If they're a part of this, then it's a good thing we're here." Sora said.

"Let's go find the Beast!" Donald declared.

"Splendid!" Cogsworth and exclaimed

Cogsworth clasped his hands together delighted at Sora and Donald's eagerness. We watched as Lumiere jumped down from his chair and hopped over to the door. With a shrug and a jerk of my head the others began to follow after the small candlestick. He opened the door for us, allowing us to go through the door.

"Follow me, messieurs. I know a shortcut." Lumiere said.

We all turned and allowed the transformed servants to go out first before walking back into the undercroft. I watched as Sora, Donald, and Goofy made their way up to the second floor by using the boxes stacked in one corner of the room. I glanced over at Twilight who was staring at the stack with apprehension. I started up, stopping when I made it halfway up turning around to help Twilight.

Kneeling down I stretched a hand out to her as she started to climb, grabbing my hand in a death grip and almost pulling me off as she lost her balance. I yanked back heaving her up next to me, patting her shoulder before heading up all the way. I looked around as Twilight pulled herself up to the second floor next to me. She looked up at me as I watched Cogsworth turn to the suits of armor.

"Allow our guests to pass!" He ordered. They moved aside allowing the other servants through before Cogsworth turned to us with a slight bow saying, "After you."

We walked past him and into a hidden chamber/corridor. Once we were inside the servants gathered around one particular spot. Twilight and I hovered close, without a question. Lumiere looked up at Sora as the boy walked over. Sora frowned and looked at the servants, worried and unsure as to why they were just stopping there.

"I'm afraid we won't be marching out that easily. You see, the door leading to the other side is concealed by a sort of contraption." Lumiere said.

"What kind of contraption?" Sora asked.

"Observe." Cogsworth said.

We watched as the clock hopped over to a crank. With a grunt he jumped up onto the crank that in turn lowered a lantern that had a dark flame glowing within it. I felt warmer as I stood closer to it. I glanced over at Twilight as she gave a slight flinch away from the lantern. Darkness was lingering in the flames and burning just as the fire did.

"The lantern came down!" Donald said, pointing out the obvious.

"Indeed it did. If we could but light all the lanterns in this passage the secret door would open…" Lumiere said.

"But, as you can see, the lanterns are already burning… with an enchanted flame." Mrs. Potts said.

I nodded and rolled my eyes slightly. It was kind of obvious that the crank was needed in order for the lanterns to be lowered. Twilight looked at me, still showing signs of discomfort because of the fire but there was nothing we could do except put it out. I glared at the fire slightly, knowing that Sora could put it out.

"You must put out this enchanted flame before I am able to light the lanterns properly." Lumiere said.

"Can't you just throw some water on 'em?" Goofy asked.

"I'm afraid that's not enough. But if you use the power of light…" Lumiere said.

"Hmm… How about I try using the Keyblade?" Sora asked.

Sora tilted his head and crossed his arms. Then he decided to summon his Keyblade. He pointed it at the lantern causing the flame to go down and Lumiere jumped up. He lit the lantern, making a bright light shine throughout the small part of the corridor. Once Lumiere landed he turned towards Sora with a smile.

"Bravo!" Lumiere cheered.

"Only three lanterns left! If we work together, we'll have that door open in no time!" Mrs. Potts said.

"Piece of cake!" Sora said grinning.

"Again, it is not quite so simple, mon ami. Certainly you cannot expect Cogsworth to hang from that handle forever?" Lumiere sighed.

Lumiere had a valid point about Cogsworth. Cogsworth wasn't strong enough and he had nothing to use as leverage against the crank. The clock looked at Lumiere indignantly, an angered look crossing his face but the candlestick ignored the dangling clock and his look of heated anger with complete nonchalance.

"What? Why? Lumiere! You…" Cogsworth stammered.

I sighed and reached over grabbing the lever, taking it from the smaller clock. It allowed Cogsworth to hop down. He sighed in relief, glad he didn't have to worry about holding the crank still. I held it tightly, not allowing it to give. It'd be a piece of cake since I was holding it instead of the weaker clock.

"Now you don't have to worry about the lever. Twilight you should go with them, you have the power of light remember." I said.

She nodded and the four of them ran off to take care of the lanterns. As we waited for the group to finish I looked down at Cogsworth observing the little clock who waited anxiously with me. It didn't take long before Sora ran over to tell us that they had finished. I nodded to the brunette and he started to run back to where the others were, glancing down at the clock I bent down and scooped him up. Cogsworth started protesting as I held him gently and started to jog to the hidden door.

"Put me down! Are you listening to me?" He demanded.

"Not really." I answered with an amused smile.

He stared up at me speechless as I drew closer to the others. I stopped when I drew next to Sora. Cogsworth sighed as I placed him on the ground. Sora looked around making sure that we were all there, doing a head count to do so. Twilight moved to stand next to me. She was smiling innocently as she stood at my side.

"Are we all set?" Twilight asked.

"Oui. The secret door should open now." Lumiere said.

"But I don't see any secret door." Goofy said.

"No need to worry. Just push that block over there… the one that's sticking out." Cogsworth said.

"Got it." Sora said.

As soon as he pushed it all the way in, the hidden door to the passage way shot up revealing a set of stairs. Sora jumped back, obviously surprised. He glanced into the dark staircase with a small smile on his lips. Twilight and I smiled and we walked through. We followed it until they reached a small landing.

"Now, I must check on the castle. I fear my absence has been too long." Lumiere said.

"I'd best be off, too dears." Mrs. Potts said.

"Watch out for Heartless!" Sora cautioned.

We watched Lumiere, Mrs. Potts, and Chip leave up the stairs. Cogsworth stayed by our side. He crossed his arms across the window on his chest, also watching his fellow servants leave. The look of concern on his face for them was hard to hide. Sora looked down at Cogsworth when he noticed that the small clock didn't move.

"The master's room is at the very end of the West Wing. I shall go on ahead and wait for you." Cogsworth said.

We all nodded as the clock finally walked off. He hopped off, obviously towards where the Beast's room was at. I looked over to Sora and Twilight. Both of them glanced over to me and when Sora saw us looking at him he motioned towards the stairs, giving us a mocking bow and a smirk. I rolled my eyes.

"Shall we?" Sora asked.

He nodded quickly and started to run up the stairs, Goofy, Donald, and Twilight not far behind. I sighed and walked into the stairwell kicking the chest that was on the other side of the door causing it to spit out a Mega-Potion at me. Catching it in mid-air I shoved it in one of my pockets_ the space in these things never end_ before running up the stairs to catch up to the others. I looked around seeing a glimpse of silver turning a corner, I started to run in that direction silently moving up behind Twilight and giving her a slight push. She yelped, turning around quickly.

"Ghost!" She screamed.

"I got ya!" I taunted.

I started laughing. I passed her I jogged up to the others. She sighed before jogging to catch up with us. Looking around we spotted Cogsworth standing outside of one of the rooms, he motioned us forward and we slowed to a walk until we halted in front of him. My eyes narrowed as I heard muffled voices coming from within the room _Xaldy, you are here I thought I sensed something._

Sora quietly opened the door and we slipped through to see the Beast talking with a man with an Organization coat. He had a strange accent that I couldn't quite place but glancing over at Twilight I caught her eye and placed a finger on my mouth in the universal sign of quiet. She nodded before turning her eyes back to the scene in front of us.

"What? To be loved and loved in return? Who could ever love a beast?" Xaldin asked, taunting the Beast.

Xaldin glanced over to us, as the Beast whipped towards Xaldin with a roar, and I blinked at the slight pickup in wind that wrapped around us. Twilight glanced over at me catching my eye and I gave her a small reassuring smile, Twilight turned back to the hooded man who directed his attention back to the Beast indicating the six of us.

"See? She has accomplices." Xaldin accused.

He floated back and waved a hand, in a flash of light a barrier formed in between everyone and the rose. As soon as the barrier was all the way up he vanished into the darkness with the familiar pull that I had come to associate with portals. Sora and the guys walk over towards the Beast, I started to head over but Twilight grabbed my arm pulling me back. I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Hey, Prince!" Sora called.

I gave a slight wince as the Beast gave an angry roar causing the others to jump back in surprise. Donald fell over since he lost his balance. I stepped back but then regained my footing and glared at the Beast defiantly.

"Oh dear! Master!" Cogsworth yelled, panicking slightly.

The Beast jumped forward slashing at the group of boys who jumped out of the way, the large angry Beast turned with a roar his eyes glazed over. As the fight went on Cogsworth having an alarm in him tried to wake the Beast up by yelling, "Please, Master! Please! Compose yourself!"

Twilight and I stood back, Twilight still gripping my arm, and watched the fight as Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Cogsworth tried to get the Beast to come to his senses.

* * *

The fight didn't take long before the Beast stumbled down onto all fours and placed a paw on his head, as if trying to alleviate a massive head ache. Cogsworth walked forward to face him. The Beast looked at the clock. He straightened up, showing he had the posture of a prince despite his beastly appearance.

"Cogsworth…what happened?" Beast asked.

"Well, Master…ah, you see…that is…How shall I say…ah, actually…mmm…" The clock stammered.

"Well, you put everybody down there in that dungeon!" Donald yelled cutting in.

I rolled my eyes with a small sigh. The Beast looked over at the duck confused. Donald stomped his foot and waved his arms out, nearly hitting my legs. I raised an eyebrow and gave him a stern look, clearly warning him to be more careful. Sheepishly he looked up at me, rubbing the back of his neck the moment he felt my gaze on his back. He looked down at the clock for confirmation.

"I did what?" The Beast asked horrified.

"Ah…you did!"

The Beast looked at the floor, as I watched him, and remained silent.

"Who was that guy you were talking to? The one in the black?" Sora asked.

Both Twilight and I sighed as he asked this. '_Sora, my unobservant little friend, you've seen the entire… Ok what's left of, the Organization and can't recognize one of their members yet?' _I thought to Beast looked down for a moment as if ashamed of himself before gasping and looking up angrily.

"Xaldin… that's his name. He came from the darkness… he… used my anger to control me. He took all my sorrow, my sadness, my pain… and turned it all into rage. There was nothing I could do…I could no longer see the truth." Beast explained.

'_Wow does he have problems. Well Xaldy has, supposedly, been at it for about a year…so I guess he had a head start.'_ I mused silently. Goofy placed a fist into one of his palms, letting it give off a slight smack as he came up with a revelation. A small smile crossed my lips as I shook my head, knowing what was going to happen next.

"Well, I'll be. That must be why you threw all of your friends down there into the dungeon. You wanted to make sure that you didn't hurt 'em, right?" Goofy said.

"Was that it? Was it to protect them?" The Beast asked.

"Sure. We know you're good inside." Goofy said with a nod.

Both Sora and Donald nodded with vigor, agreeing with their taller companion. Twilight and I forgotten at the moment, just stood there with small smiles on our faces. We watched as Cogsworth jumped and spread his arms trying to boost his Master's morale.

"He's right, Master. We've all seen how kind you can be. After all, Belle can see the goodness in your heart, but I'm afraid you've yet to…" Cogsworth proclaimed.

The Beast jerked up at the mention of Belle. I watched him, amazed at the way he seemed to stand straighter. His eyes lightened up and I could almost feel light radiating from his heart as he thought about the princess of heart. He almost seemed like a different man as he thought about the woman he obviously cared a lot about, although, I use the term man loosely.

"Belle!" He sighed and slumped forward saying, "I've mistreated her… I've mistreated her and been so selfish."

I rolled my eyes. '_He has emotional problems and self-esteem issues, isn't he just a bundle of fun.'_ I thought as Sora jumped in to try and keep the Beast's confidence up. Sora seemed to care a lot about what others thought about themselves and I guess that was sort of one of his finer points about him.

"She didn't say anything about that." Sora said.

"She'd never tell anyone of my cruelty…She's too good." Beast murmured.

Beast straightened up long enough to grab his head and bend down again. I stared at him disbelievingly. '_Emotional issues, self-esteem issues, and melodramatic how many more things can he tack onto his list of 'I need to see a shrink."_ I thought and nearly laughed at it but held it in since I didn't want to offend anyone, I wasn't that big of a jerk though I could be if needed.

"You see, I'm afraid he judges himself far too harshly." Cogsworth whispered to Sora, hiding his mouth behind his hand.

"Why don't you just go talk to her?" Sora suggested with a shrug.

"But…"

Sora, being stubborn, didn't allow the Beast to back out. The Beast was doomed from the start. Both Twilight and I knew no one was able to hold their own against Sora once he got an idea stuck in his head.

"No excuses! C'mon, we'll go with you." Sora insisted.

He gave a slight nod and we started to head out. Twilight and I allowed the guys to walk past us for a moment as I gave a chest a kick so that it could spit a recipe out at me. I grinned as I held the weathered paper in my hands before pocketing it. I looked up to see Twilight, who was watching me with an amused look. The longer I stared the wider her grin grew.

"What?" I asked.

"And you said that Sora was obsessed with chests? Yet here I see you getting as many as you can find." She replied in a sing song voice.

I blinked finally comprehending it after a moment. I shook my head at myself, hating to see that I'm doing what Sora does. Then I smiled and gave a small chuckle as I walked past her. She watched, smiling at me, barely able to keep from laughing along with me. I could see the bottled laughter dancing in her eyes.

"C'mon we don't want to miss the boss fight, now do we?" I asked.

Twilight shuddered slightly before running out of the room after me. We followed the line of disappearing Heartless getting attacked by statues a few times but nothing large enough to worry about. It didn't take long before we made it to the entrance hall and spotted the guys. With a grin Twilight waved them down.

"Hey, guys!" She called.

They stopped as Twilight jogged up to them and I followed at a slower pace, not really in a hurry to catch up. I looked over at Sora who had Cure being cast on him by Donald. I shook my head at Sora's clumsiness. One of these days it would get him killed and there was going to be nothing that anyone could do to stop it.

"What did you do to yourself now?" I sighed.

"Well, I was looking for you and Twilight and got attacked from behind." He said with a sheepish grin.

"Didn't I tell you to pay attention before?" I asked.

I sighed again and shook my head as he gave a small laugh while he nodded. I reached over and ruffled his hair slightly. He really was like having a kid brother to look after, constantly needing to be watched and guided as he ran amuck amongst the worlds. It was a little hard to believe he was as strong as he was.

"Sora, Sora, Sora. What am I going to do with you?" I teased exasperated.

Donald finished casting his spell and looked up at me, as I gave Sora a small worried smile as the boy ran over to Twilight. The two of them then decided to race down the hallway, seeing who could get to the end the fastest. They nearly plowed Goofy into a statue but had the shield wielding dog not stepped out of the way in time I think there may have been a chain of statues that would have fallen over like dominoes.

"I think you worry too much about Twilight and Sora." Donald said.

I looked down at the duck for a moment before looking over at the two mentioned people. I shook my head, knowing full well that he was wrong. I worried just as much as I needed to. Both of them were danger prone and where there was danger the two of them would be right in the midst of it. Someone had to step up and take care of them or else the two would be heartless in an Olympic minute.

"I can't help it. It's in my nature to worry." I replied.

My face changed to an _'I knew it'_ expression as Twilight tripped, Sora grabbing her hand, and the two of them both fell down the stairs with a thud. Luckily there wasn't a crash, signaling that they hadn't broken something. I caught the look on Donald's face out of the corner of my eye and with a smirk I turned back to the ungraceful lump that was our two friends.

"Are you sure I worry too much?" I asked.

He looked up at me. His expression was similar to my own and we both walked down the stairs to help the two up. I grabbed Twilight's hand and yanked her up with a sigh. I didn't even say anything I just patted her shoulder and brushed off some nonexistent dirt with a bemused smile. Then we started up the stairs to the East Wing.

"Master!" The wardrobe exclaimed.

Beast burst into Belle's room he looked around, startling the wardrobe/servant. She jumped in surprise as the rest of us filed in one by one until the room was almost uncomfortably crowded. I shifted a little, trying to get as comfortable as one could get with so many people packed inside.

"Everybody's safe now." Donald said.

"Wonderful! Thank you!" The wardrobe sighed.

"Where's Belle?" Beast asked.

"Why, she left in a hurry. Something about going after this… man in black." The wardrobe said.

"Hopefully he doesn't have a flashy-thingy." I whispered in Twilight's ear.

She snorted and clapped her hands over her mouth shoulders shaking in pent up laughter. I grinned as I watched her expression struggle to remain blank. It was an inside joke about the Organization having the same memory flashers that the characters of Men in Black had. I shook my head as I watched her.

"What?" Beast demanded, "Why doesn't she do as she's told?"

"Temper, temper! Her spirit is what makes Belle so special." The wardrobe chided.

"We'd better go find her!"Sora insisted.

He stopped the Beast before he could go into another rant. I grabbed Twilight and pulled her out of the way as the guys charged past us. I sighed and shook my head. '_Impatience like that is going to make them miss things.'_ I thought to myself. Twilight ran out after them and I followed quickly, moving fast as my eyes flicked back and forth trying to remember the scene after the battle. I pushed those thoughts aside as we made our way to the entrance.

"I'm warning you! You'll be sorry!" A muffled voice cried from inside the Ballroom.

The guys looked around as the Beast yelled in response to the voice. Twilight and I sighed, looking to the door to the Ballroom. It was kind of obvious that she was there because if she were in any other room her voice would have sounded a little softer since she'd be a little further away from them. I waited for them to figure it out on their own though.

"Belle! Where are you?" Beast yelled worriedly.

Both Twilight and I pointed at the ballroom as the other girl yelled

"Beast! Help! I'm in the ballroom!" Belle responded.

We entered the room to see Belle running across the ballroom and exiting.

"Belle!" The Beast yelled.

"I'm all right!" She called back.

She went through the balcony door, exiting to safety. My eyes widened as a chained floating ball with what looked like blue fire on the front of it and horns dropped down trying to go after the Princess. We watched as it turned around and floated up to the candelabra before dropping into the ground, darkness spreading out from it in a wave. The guys, excluding Beast, and Twilight panicked slightly at the encroaching darkness. I simply watched it, feeling it as almost a welcoming presence, as it spread over the floor and up the pillars to the ceiling.

The Shadow Stalker went up and merged with the Candelabra, dropping it down, everyone dodging out of the way, my sword appearing in my right hand unsheathed. Twilight and I began to shout directions at the boys on how to defeat it making this battle faster than it normally would have been. Twilight helped by releasing the Shadow Stalker when Sora was busy elsewhere and I could feel where it was going to attack, particularly when it possessed the window to make those laser like beams. We watched as the Shadow Stalker began to have convulsions of some sort the chains on it coming loose, its mouth opening wide and darkness engulfing it.

"Donald, cure everyone who was hurt quickly." I said quickly.

"Huh?"

"Just do it!" I snapped at the duck.

Those few seconds that we had before Dark Thorne emerged were up and Donald quaked in surprise as it popped out of the orb. The duck started to cast cures as the Ifirit-like Heartless dropped the candelabra. I grabbed the duck in mid-spell running out of the way just in time as the candelabra dropped inches behind me. Donald finished casting cure and I placed him on the ground turning my attention to the Heartless which had turned invisible. My blue eyes moved over every inch of the room, searching for it. My eyes locked onto the familiar outline and I ran toward it.

"Sora! Over here!" I cried.

He joined me in attacking it as Twilight healed Goofy who had gotten knocked about. I jumped back as it reappeared and started charging about the ballroom. My eyes followed it as it leaped up on top of the candelabra, using it as a weapon. I ran over and grabbed Twilight, dragging her behind a pillar to avoid getting hit. It didn't take long before Sora had been knocked towards one of the pillars, used it as slingshot, and sent himself flying back at the Heartless, knocking it off of the candelabra.

He took a page out of its book and used the candelabra as a weapon after it had turned invisible. Once it was down, everyone started to attack it at once and repeat. The battle continued a while in this manner until it vanished with a flash of light into darkness with a roar. After it vanished the darkness that had taken over the ballroom left with it, Twilight sitting on the floor with a sigh. I turned to her with a smile and said "You didn't have a clumsy moment through this entire battle. I'm impressed."

"That you know of." She said with a weary smirk.

"We did it!" Sora said excited.

He pumped his fist in the air, Keyblade still in hand. I felt a tug. Everyone tensed up when I did and we all jumped. We were looking around, trying to find the culprit for the Heartless' release. I could feel something there, knowing it was Xaldin since he was supposed to appear soon. Twilight seemed a little nervous as she looked around with us.

"So you think." Xaldin said.

Looking over we saw Xaldin standing by the entrance his hood still up and hiding his face from us, his arms behind his back. The Beast and Sora started running over toward the man but he vanished into the darkness. I lowered my weapon knowing it was no longer needed. We wouldn't need to fight until we reached the next world.

"Farewell." Xaldin said before he vanished.

They stopped running when it is obvious that he is no longer there. Sora sighed and lowered his weapon. The Beast jerked upright, glaring coldly at the spot where Xaldin once stood. Sora was glaring as well but he was on edge, waiting for something to attack him. Donald and Goofy were just as tense as he was.

"What does he want here?" Beast snarled.

"He must be with Organization XIII" Sora said, "Ever heard of Nobodies? When a strong-hearted person turns into a Heartless, a Nobody's created, too. See the Organization… they got control of all the Nobodies."

"That's right. And they were gonna make you into a Heartless. That way, they could get that Nobody of yours and have control over it." Goofy said.

Sora pointed at him and nodded before crossing his arms as I turned, hearing the balcony door open. Belle rushed in, looking very relieved when she saw that they were all okay. Twilight and I relaxed and we smiled at her, assuring her that we were fine. Besides, Sora was the hero of the story and he is usually hard to defeat.

"You're alright!" Belle sighed in relief.

"Belle!" Beast cried.

He stopped in front of her and opened his arms but she just stood there, looking away slightly. I looked down as the transformed servants walked in stopping in front of us as we waited. The Beast slumped forward and looked at the ground, hanging his head in shame and unable to meet her in the eyes.

"I-I'm sorry… I …wasn't myself. I hope I haven't done anything to hurt you." As he spoke she shook her head and smiled making the Beast smile as well and he said, "Forgive me."

"I know you weren't yourself. You don't have to apologize. But I had hoped…" She said, wagging her finger at him scolding, "…that you might have changed a little bit. I wish you could start trusting me."

With that she crossed her arms, turning away, and the Beast looked down. Twilight and I smiled. I froze when I heard a distinct hopping noise and when I looked down I saw the other servants standing at our feet. Lumiere sighed and shook his head as he watched his master with disapproval shining in his eyes.

"Oh, I am afraid time is running short." Lumiere said.

"What do you mean?" Sora asked confused.

"Remember the rose?" Lumiere asked.

"From the Beast's room?" Donald supplied.

Twilight and I looked at one another, recalling the rose with smiles on our faces. When we were in the room it was hard to see just how many petals had fallen from the rose and we didn't dare go over to disturb it, especially not with the Beast around. Besides, it wasn't like the two of us didn't know how the story ended.

"Precisely. You see, if the master can learn to love, and earn love in return, before the last petal falls…" Cogsworth said.

"…The spell will be broken." Lumiere said mysteriously.

"Really? You think he's gonna make it?" Sora asked.

He placed his hands on his hips and looked over at the Beast and Belle. There was an amused look on his face as he watched the couple in front of him. Mrs. Potts nodded and rubbed her head against Chip in the closest thing they could do to a hug. The small tea cup smiled and leaned against his mother for the comforting 'hug' she was giving him.

"We think so." Mrs. Potts said.

"Yep, I think you're right…" Goofy proclaimed.

"I _hope_ you're right…" Sora sighed.

"Trust us, they're right." Twilight and I said in unison.

The others turned to us in slight confusion before looking over at Sora because his Keyblade had appeared. They looked around for a moment not seeing anything glowing, other than Twilight's hand. A beam of light shot from her hand in the direction of the room where the rose was and Sora's Keyblade followed the direction of the light. Beast and Belle walked over to us, slightly confused.

"What happened?" Beast asked.

"The gate is open!" Donald cried.

"Do you have to go?" Belle asked slightly disappointed.

"Yeah." Sora said with a nod.

"No!" Twilight cried.

The boys jumped and looked at us in confusion. Sora cocked his head to the side, giving an almost pouting frown as he looked at us but neither Twilight nor I were going to budge on the subject. We weren't flying with them all night. We'd get no sleep whatsoever and that would be bad since we'd be a little off when fighting the Heartless.

"Huh?"

"I am not spending the next 9, count it, 9 hours with the four of you and little sleep. You think I can be scary in the morning try me at 3 AM with a headache." I said.

"C'mon Sora, one night and then we can leave in the morning. Please." Twilight said, pouting.

He looked between the two of us and Twilight gave him puppy dog eyes that could make anyone give in, '_Ok maybe not everyone… I'm fairly sure Sai and Xemy wouldn't give in but the rest of them… that's a different story.'_ I mused. The boy didn't stand a chance between Twilight's puppy dog face and my implied threat he gave in.

* * *

I stretched and gave a quiet groan in the room that Beast had loaned me for the night. Twilight was in the room across the hall from me. Sora, Donald, and Goofy were on the other side of the castle in separate rooms as well. I got up from the chair where I was sitting, placing my sunglasses on the dresser and tossing my coat onto the bed. As I walked over to the window I heard my door open quietly.

"You really should knock before entering." I said.

I glanced over my shoulder at Twilight who was now sitting on my bed, shrugging slightly. She was smiling and trying to pass as innocent. I watched as she flopped back on the bed, using her arms as an impromptu pillow, even though there already was one and a very usable one at that. I rolled by eyes when she continued to grin at me.

"Any sign of them?" She asked.

I shook my head, crossing my arms, my eyebrows furrowing as the two of us waited in silence. It wasn't long before I felt the familiar tug that indicated a portal, concentrating on that I turned around and stared at nothing. Twilight gave a slight _'eep' _jumping and falling off the bed with a thump when we both heard a warping sound and a portal appeared. A slender figure with a mullet walked out of it. I smiled and glanced at Twilight out of the corner of my eye, where she looked extremely relieved that it was him and not someone else.

I waved at the dishwater blonde and he smiled before sitting on the bed next to Twilight. I raised my eyebrow and quirked a crooked smile. Demyx just scratched the back of his head slightly a small blush creeping onto his cheeks. Twilight on the other hand was extremely red as she stared at Demyx out of the corner of her eye. I chuckled and walked over to a chair turning it so I could face the bed and its two blushing occupants.

"Do you have anything to say or is this just a social visit?" I asked.

"Um… it's just a social visit."

The blonde Nobody chuckled and scratched the back of his head sheepishly. He ducked his head quickly, his arms over his head quickly. I stared at him baffled as to why he would do that. Twilight seemed just as concerned as I was. She sat up looking at Demyx concerned. She reached towards him gently, as if afraid to startle him. She was treating him like a wild animal that needed coaxing out.

"Don't hurt me!" He cried fearfully.

I blinked astonished and leaned back, even Twilight was staring at him in shock. I quietly stood up and walked over to Demyx. I reached out a hand out to him he flinched away from it. My eyes filled with understanding and pity as I gently placed a hand on his shoulder, feeling the pull of a portal forming behind me. He looked up at me with fear causing me to flinch slightly.

"I'm not going to hit you or anything just 'cause you couldn't get any information." I said.

The musician stared at me his eyes still doubting. Axel walked up behind me and I didn't need to turn around to feel him standing behind me. He put a hand on my shoulder but I didn't turn. My eyes were fixed on Demyx. The water boy was still tense as can be but he relaxed considerably with Twilight hovering over him worriedly.

"That's how the Superior deals with failures. You fail. You get your ass kicked." Axel said.

I looked back at Axel, tucking all emotion of this revelation behind a barrier that he couldn't see past. I wanted to hurt Xemnas even more now than ever. It was beyond appalling that Xemnas would run the others like that. _This_ wasn't in the game and it was a good thing it wasn't. Too many players would be appalled by this if they knew.

"Well that's not how I run things." I said darkly.

Looking back at Demyx I tilted my head catching his eyes with my own and gave him a reassuring smile. He gave a weak smile back, wary but still trusting. He watched me with vibrant sea green eyes, still a little fearful but more relaxed than he had been. It made my heart ache at the thought of him being afraid of me.

"You don't have to worry about that when you're with me alright." I said gently.

I looked over at Twilight who looked at me questioningly and I jerked my head over to the door. Getting the idea she stood up and gripped Demyx's hand, tugging him towards the door leading the blushing Nobody out of the room. I could hear her laughter as she dragged the water affiliated Nobody out the door.

* * *

Closing the door behind her Twilight looked up at the dishwater blond as he stared at anywhere but her. The Nobody jerking in surprise as she wrapped her arms around him comfortingly. She gave a light laugh and to him it sounded like the lilting tone of bells, light and carefree, as if nothing bad had happened back in Ghost's room.

"You really don't have to worry about that stuff with her…or me for that matter. It's one of the few things that we actually have really in common…" Twilight assured him.

'_Besides a love of anime and games,'_ She thought. Not that she was going to tell him that. No one else could know that this universe that they were in wasn't really real and that in her world it was just a game. Or was it that her world was fake and this was reality? She had no idea and decided not to pursue the answer to save herself a headache.

"We both hate bullies. I may not be as extreme as she is but you don't have to worry about getting hurt with the two of us." She continued.

Pulling away from the blond, pink tinting her cheeks. Twilight grinned up at the shocked man and grabbed his hand pulling him after her. He felt his own lips tug upwards in a light smile as he watched her. He almost had to run to keep up with her and to prevent her from dragging him across the deserted hallways.

"Come on let's have some fun! Have you ever been armor tipping?" She asked.

Running after the girl Demyx tilted his head confused. He eyed her warily and smiled slightly, not sure what she intended when she asked him that but he was slightly worried it would involve something he wouldn't like later. But with the smile on her face it was going to be hard to say no to her, especially since she seemed so sure of herself.

"No." He answered.

Twilight shot him a brilliant smile over her shoulder.

"Good. Neither have I." She said.

* * *

I sat down on the now unoccupied bed and placed my head in my hands. I stiffened slightly as I felt Axel sit on the bed next to me, relaxing after a moment but refusing to look at him. He looked down at me for a moment in concern. I swallowed hard, trying not to burst but it felt like I would explode if I said anything at all.

"You okay?" He asked.

I glanced up at him for a moment before returning my gaze back to the floor but that small amount of time had shown him that something was wrong, but I still nodded my head. It was hard, looking him in the eyes. I felt like he could see through me as he looked at me. I heard him sigh. He ran a hand through his hair, watching me with his bright green eyes.

"You really shouldn't lie." Axel told me.

I gave a single curt quiet laugh at this but he got no other reaction. He sighed again and grabbed my hands forcing them away from my face. He quickly transferred both of my wrists to one hand and grabbed my chin making me have eye contact with him. My blue eyes smoldered with an anger he had never seen in me before, not even during the wildfire incident. He wasn't sure which he preferred the outgoing anger that threatened to hurt people or this… controlled anger that he didn't know when or how it was going to be unleashed. He stared at me for a moment longer.

"Is this because Xemnas has a particular fondness for beating the people who fail him?" He asked, as if it just dawned on him.

As he said this my eyes gave a dangerous flash and I jerked my chin out of his grasp and pulled my wrists away standing up so I could pace and relieve some of the anger that was building in my chest. Axel watched me pace for a few minutes as I walked silently before sighing and snagging my wrist causing me to stop and look down at him.

"Will you talk to me?" He asked

I opened my mouth, snapping it shut and sighed, sitting down next to him staring at the ground. I bit my lip, trying to figure out words to give him, words to describe my anger and disgust. It was harder than I thought. Rage, fury, anger all of them didn't seem fitting enough to describe my feelings. Words like hatred, loathing, and distain also seemed too weak to describe my feeling for Xemnas.

"I _hate_ bullies. Always have, it's even worse when they're going after someone that's under my protection and there's nothing I can do about it." I snarled.

Axel's eyes widened as he listened my voice changing from a controlled anger to a more pronounced barely restrained rage. He released my wrists and wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me against his chest. For a moment I tensed and tried to pull away from him but he wouldn't let up and I finally relaxed against him.

"Sometimes there's nothing you can do." He told me.

"I don't like it." I replied.

He heard me growl in frustration. He gave a slight smile and gently ran a hand through my hair.

"Sometimes shit like that happens; I never said you had to like it." Axel said.

I pulled back slightly to look up at him amusement entering into my eyes. He smiled down at her, noticing the look on her face. He rolled his eyes as he watched her but there was also amusement shining in his eyes as he watched her. It was nice, to relax like this and to just be a normal teen, even if normal was being used lightly.

"You're a real comforter ya know that." I sighed.

He smirked as he heard the teasing behind the frustration and anger. I sighed again and placed my forehead on his chest. He blushed, glad that I couldn't see him do so, and placed his other arm around my waist tentatively. I shifted slightly and looked back up at him, raising an eyebrow. He raised one in response to my own and my mouth formed into a small smile. I gave a quiet chuckle. '_Twilight would have had to of taken me to a weapons shop and about two hours of beating the crap out of Heartless to get me out of this funk, all Axel has to do is show up. Sheesh, what is wrong with me?'_ I thought.

"What's got you so happy all of a sudden?" He asked.

"That's for me to know, you to find out." I said, shaking my head.

He smiled for a moment before releasing me from his arms, reluctantly. I looked up at him confused as he stood up. He glanced down for a moment rubbing the back of his neck, rather sheepishly almost embarrassed as he looked at me. With a frown placed on my lips I sat on the edge of my bed, worried. I tilted my head to the side, motioning that I'd like an answer.

"Both Demyx and I shouldn't stay here long, not with Xaldin skulking around." Axel said.

I nodded in understanding and smiled at him as he walked over to the door and left in search of Demyx, giving up after a little while. I kicked off my shoes and lay back in the bed pulling the covers up and stared at the ceiling for a moment, feeling sleep close in on me. I drifted off to, hopefully, a dreamless sleep and would wake in the morning refreshed.

* * *

**Hope you liked it. Now the shout outs : Anexi, Menolly, Blackoutpanther, Kita-san (my awesome beta you have a billion thanks and eternal gratitude), purplekitsune-chan, lilchinkkviet, xFALLENxISOLATIONx, KHFan101, recue, Kat, and Arora Borialis. If I spelled anything wrong or missed someone; I'm sorry. Till next time. :)**


	12. Leaving the Beast for a bear

**Yep, I've managed to pull out a transition chapter…so it's kind of boring but hey, things like this happen. *shrugs* Not much I can do, if it was a boring part of the game. Trust me it could be far worse. And yes I am putting a plug in for GermanSeabass on Youtube. If you want to actually hear what it is I'm talking about go to his main page or search for KH melody. Shout outs go to: Kita-san(of course), RoxasKalmus, Crazed Anime Fanatic, Menolly, DemonicChick888, and -84Silver48-. **

**Disclaimer: Nope still don't own KH2 but Ghost and Twilight are mine. I also don't own any of the games or shows that the songs come from.**

**Chapter 12: Leaving the Beast for a Bear**

* * *

I rolled over as I felt a pull from the darkness drag me back to conciseness. I opened my eyes for a moment before quickly closing them as I heard heavy footsteps heading towards my bed. _'It's not Axel or Demyx… It's got to be one of the other Organization members and considering where we are it's probably Xaldin. Crap. I really don't want to deal with the side burn wind freak right now. Couldn't he have come in the morning at least?'_

My eyes snapped open as another tug from the darkness appeared. Neither man could see that I was awake since my back was to them. They were too focused on one another then to look at me. I could almost feel the tension that was now surging through the air as the two looked at one another.

"You touch her, you die." Axel hissed venomously.

Axel's voice was dangerously low as he threatened the other Organization member. _'Axel, you… idiot! You're gonna draw attention to yourself, not to mention give you __and__ me a weak spot. Moron, think before you act!'_ I screamed in my head. Desperately I wanted to voice those thoughts but that would then notify both men that I was awake.

"Axel, you are willing to give up any chance you had of coming back to the Organization for a woman you cannot possibly care about." Xaldin informed the red head.

Xaldin's strangely accented voice stated with a slight tinge of confusion to his voice. Anger boiled in my chest and the desire to punch Xaldin's lights out was growing harder and harder to fight. I wondered if I could break his nose if I aimed right. _'Don't fall for it Axel. He's just baiting you.'_ I silently thought.

"What would you know about anything?"Axel demanded.

I winced upon hearing him answer, wanting to beg him to stop talking, for himself, for me and to stop taunting Xaldin. I felt so bad for him, being trashed talked to but Axel was being an idiot. Xaldin had made it to my hit list, literally. When we fought him I was going to hit him hard, to make him pay for Axel's discomfort. He'd regret this at least. I almost laughed at the thought of his immanent demise. Sora would see to that.

"You are a Nobody. You can't care about her, so why keep up this pretense?" Xaldin asked and laughed afterwards.

Axel remained silent and I heard the rustle of cloth as he lowered his arm. I blinked as I felt a tug from the darkness and the feeling that Xaldin had left. _'He let him go? Good… I would have had to save Xaldy's life if he didn't and that would've sucked.'_ I heard Axel walk over to the bed and felt him brush hair from my check.

He pulled his hand away and I grabbed it, he looked down at me in surprise as he caught a flash of blue from my eyes as I looked up at him. I sat up, still holding his hand, and watched him silently. His eyes widened as I sat up and he tried to pull away but I tightened my grip not allowing him to leave. He gave up after a moment and looked at the ground.

"How long have you been up?" He asked.

I blinked owlishly.

"The entire time." I replied.

His hand clenched into a fist and he kept his gaze away from mine.

"Then you heard everything?" He questioned.

He glanced at me slightly and I nodded quietly as I continued to watch him. I blinked in surprise when I saw something like fear and sadness in his eyes. I pulled him down so that he was sitting on the bed. He stared at the floor, unable to meet my eyes. Shame seemed to keep his gaze away. Gently I placed a hand on his forearm. The gentle touch seemed to startle him.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

He looked over at me, quickly turning away quickly. I gripped his arm a little firmer, holding him in place. A part of me was afraid that he'd bolt at the first chance he had. It made me fear that he'd never come back and it would be all Xaldin's fault. I couldn't hide the concern that was obviously written across my face but Axel needed to know I was worried about him.

"I didn't want you to know…" I tilted my head as he trailed off.

"You didn't want me to know, what? That you're a Nobody?" I asked.

He looked over at me sharply and I sighed. I pulled him into a hug. His head rested on my shoulder. I felt him tense under my touch but he didn't pull away and that could be considered a good thing. I could feel each breath he took, the hot air brushing against my skin. I almost shivered but I was able to repress the feeling after a moment.

"You being a Nobody was never an issue Axel."

I felt him blink, his eyelashes on my neck, I smiled down at him.

"You just keep being you, okay?" I asked.

He nodded before pulling away to look me in the eye saying

"You are one of the strangest girls I have ever met." He said with a grin.

"I'll take that as a compliment."

He snorted and gave an amused smirk, shaking his head slightly. He sighed again and placed his head back on my shoulder. I blinked in surprise as he asked

"Are you sure you're not… disgusted with the fact that I have no heart? That I can't feel anything?" He asked, concerned.

I leaned back and looked at him for a moment before placing my forehead on his making him blush despite the sadness that lingered in his eyes and asked

"If you can't feel anything than why is it that you're eyes look so sad?" I replied.

He blinked as I pulled away and glanced at the grandfather clock in the room. _'3 am and an adrenaline rush… great I'm never gonna get to sleep now.' _Axel pulled away completely and I shivered slightly with the loss of his extra body heat. He summoned a portal and looked back over at me. There was a look of regret shining in his eyes.

"This is the second time I've said good-bye to you today." He said.

He seemed a little bitter as he spoke about it and I could tell he didn't want to leave but he had to. Sora couldn't find him in my room or else he'd throw a fit about it. Donald and Goofy wouldn't be too trusting of him either. I had to play my cards right for things to work out just right so I shook my head and grinned.

"Second time in less than six hours not today. Hah." I corrected teasingly.

He snorted and stepped through with a wave back to me. As soon as the portal was gone, I lay back down and stared at the ceiling trying to go back to sleep. _'This has just been one F-ed up night.'_ I stayed that way for about an hour before I looked over at the clock again and sighed, sitting up. I'm never getting back to sleep now might as well get up and moving.

I slipped my shoes on, put my belt back around my waist, and grabbed my bowie from the nightstand. Placing the blade back in its proper place behind my back I walked over to the dresser to snag my sunglasses slipping them onto the top of my head before quietly opening the door. I stuck my head out into the darkened hallway, reached back into the room to grab my coat, and stepped out, gently closing the door behind me.

As I wandered the halls all I had to do was follow my nose to find the kitchen. I sighed happily as I smelled the baking bread. I opened the kitchen door and stepped inside, pressing against the wall to avoid being hit by one of the transformed cooks. Mrs. Potts spotted me as I watched the hustle and bustle of the kitchen and carted herself over to me.

"I guess you're an early riser, aren't you dear?" A voice asked.

I looked at the teapot. She was smiling at me, not at all surprised nor offended by my presence. I shook my head with a smile. I looked around the kitchen. It was rather surprising to see it as busy as it was since it was as early as it was. I wondered if the servants were going out of their way since they had us as guests but I shook the thought out of my head.

"Ever since I started traveling with Sora I haven't been able to sleep in like I used too. As for right now, I just couldn't sleep anymore." I told her.

"Would you like a cup of tea?" Mrs. Potts asked.

"Yes, please." I said.

I smiled at her gratefully. She turned to go and get started brewing the tea I requested but I raised one hand to hold her back. She seemed to notice this without me saying anything and so she turned to look at me with a patient smile and a certain bit of cheer about her as she waited for me to ask my question.

"Um… would you happen to have a music room that I could shut myself in for a few hours?" I asked hesitantly.

"Yes, I'll have one of the servants guide you there and deliver your tea there." She said with a polite smile and an affirming nod.

"Thank you." I replied.

"Not a problem dear. Not a problem." She said.

She started to cart herself off. I waited a moment and then felt something brush my leg. I looked down to see a feather duster at my feet. She smiled at me and I couldn't help but smile back since her grin was infectious.

"Follow me, please." She said in a heavily accented voice.

I nodded and walked down a maze of hallways eventually making my way into the music room. I turned and thanked the servant before walking over to the piano and playing one of the notes to hear if it was in tune. I smiled as it gave off a clear note and I sat down. The quiet melody of Dearly Beloved winged its way around the room before switching to the faster tune of Hikari. As I continued to play a medley of Kingdom Hearts music Mrs. Potts opened the door and carted her way quietly in.

I glanced over as I heard her wheel her way in not stopping the music. It was a fairly long medley so she waited until the end of the song. As I let the last note die out I reached over and picked up the teacup that was full of tea. I couldn't help but notice that it giggled and wiggled in my hands as I took a deep drink, relishing the feel of the hot liquid.

"That was beautiful." She said.

I smiled set the tea cup down on its saucer. I set the set down on the piano, careful to keep the scalding hot liquid away from the keys. Embarrassed I looked away from her gaze and scratched the back of my head showing just how embarrassed I was with the small gesture. She just continued to smile, not really accusing me of doing something wrong.

"I had to find something my fingers were itching to play an instrument again. Just don't ask me to play a saxophone I sound like a dying cat." I replied.

"Could you play something else? Something not quite so…harsh at some places?" She questioned.

I nodded. As much as I love that medley it does have some battle music in it, placing the teacup down, I turned back to the piano, and closed my eyes to find a melody. I smiled when I heard the first few chords of a song that I adored, perhaps because it was my first Final Fantasy song. I placed my hands on the ivory keys gently and began the song To Zanarkand from Final Fantasy X. A gentle smile appeared on my face as I played and a look of contentment entered into my eyes.

* * *

Twilight walked down the hallway, thinking about her night with Demyx. A strange sight interrupted her thoughts so she paused and walked backward as she passed by a door spotting the boys and Belle. All of them stood there with their ears pressed against the door, obviously listening to something or another. Tilting her head curiously she headed over to them deciding to find out for herself.

"What are you guys doing?" She asked.

Twilight blinked in surprise as she was quickly hushed by the boys and with a confused expression on her face placed her own ear against the door to hear a piano being played. All four of them winced as Twilight lost her balance and used Sora's head as post causing the unfortunate victim's forehead to slam into the door.

* * *

The teapot sighed happily as I finished the song and I heard a muffled thump from the other side of the door. I blinked a few times staring at it before sighing to myself. I looked down at Mrs. Potts with a small, knowing smile across my lips. I just shook my head and turned back to the piano keys once more. For a moment I just stared at them, wondering what to play next.

"I guess I have a larger audience than I thought I did." I sighed.

The teapot looked at me confused as I began to play Brajta (Brothers) from Full Metal Alchemist. I jerked my head back to the door and Mrs. Potts glanced over at it and chuckled having spotted the boys, Belle, and Twilight listening in. I smiled as I finished and cracked my knuckles slightly preparing for an extremely difficult song. It was from Final Fantasy VII and I could just remember how it went. I chuckled.

"I'm about to give myself carpal tunnel but I shall attempt to play Tatakau Monotachi." I said loudly enough to be heard on the outside.

I got my expected reaction from Twilight when I heard a muffled 'squee!' from the other side of the door. Mrs. Potts was startled by the noise but I wasn't, not even when I heard the almost violent shushing from the other side of the door as well, proving the boys were listening in as well. I rolled my eyes but focused on the piano in front of me.

"What does that mean?" Mrs. Potts asked.

"It means something like fighting or those who fight… something like that. It's definitely harsher than the last couple of songs I played." I replied.

I turned back to the piano and licked my lips before beginning. I finished with mistakes but overall it was a decent playing especially without the sheet music in front of me. It was an accomplishment to be proud of if I do say so myself. But once I was done I was waving both of my hands to work out the cramps that had built up in them because of this one song.

"Ow, ow,ow, ow,ow." I muttered like a mantra.

I walked over to the door quietly, pulling it open and causing the five people on the other side to fall over in various degrees. Belle stumbled but remained standing. She was the only one. The others were in a graceful and highly tangled heap at my feet. They looked up at me with grins and I smiled down at them before carefully stepping over them and heading back to the kitchen.

When I got there I grabbed some food from the bustling kitchen as I had missed breakfast before since I had gone to the music room instead, not that I really minded. With a sigh I walked out to the guys who were saying good-bye to Beast and Belle. I swallowed my bite of croissant before smiling and waving good-bye at them.

"See you guys later!" I shouted to them.

They both nodded as Twilight and I headed off to the Gummi ship. It was probably better to give Sora and the others a little room while they said goodbye since they were closer to Beast and Belle than Twilight and I could ever dream of being. But Goofy, seeing our retreating figures slinking into the Gummi shook his head.

"Now, no more arguin', okay?" Goofy told us.

We sighed, nodding and agreeing to his 'order.' Though the thought of Goofy giving orders was kind of funny since he couldn't really tell anyone what to do or if he did, no one really listened, especially not Donald or Sora since the two were constantly bickering with one another. The two of us closed the door behind us as the others said their good-byes.

"Did anything interesting happen last night with you and Demyx?" I asked.

The girl turned to look at me, a mixture of horrified shock on her face as to what I had implied happened while she and Demyx were out running about the castle. Her jaw was dropped and a hot and indignant blush crossed her cheeks. Try as she might but there was no way that she could play the blush off. Despite anything she could tell me.

"What's that suppose to mean?" She demanded.

I held up my hands in a placating gesture, playing innocent despite the fact we both knew I wasn't really that innocent after all. I shook my head a slight smile on my lips. I couldn't help but mess with her. It was too much fun and her reactions were always what I expected they would be. Besides if I didn't tease her she'd tease me.

"I'm just messing with ya Twilight, chill." I replied, nonchalantly.

She turned back towards the gummi ship and glanced at me from the corner of her eye before. I looked ahead, to hide the knowing smile on my lips. Since I messed with her she'd try to do the same to me. Too bad my night was a little more entertaining than hers was.

"Did anything interesting happen with you last night?" She questioned.

"Xaldy tried to kill me, other than that not really." I said dismissively.

For a moment, Twilight stared at me for a moment, not understanding what I meant by what I had said, so nonchalantly. And then realization dawned on her. Her eyes got wide and her jaw dropped, showing the horror and the shock that was running through her heart. She swallowed hard and rather nervously at that.

"He tried to… What?!" She demanded, shocked.

"He tried to kidnap/kill me didn't really have a chance to find out 'cause Axel came and got to play knight in shining armor." I shrugged.

I glanced over at the door as it opened and the boys came out. I gave a slight shake of my head and Twilight stopped whatever she was going to say. We both knew very well we couldn't really talk about this freely with Sora, Donald and Goofy running amuck. I smiled at the boys as they stopped in front of us. They turned to me, seeing the smiling expression on my face.

"Let's get this show on the road." I said.

Sora grinned and nodded enthusiastically. After we stepped onto the gummi ship and everyone sat down, Twilight produced a deck of cards from one of the compartments in the ship, a table appearing in between our two seats. I glanced up to see a confused look on Goofy's face as he tilted his head to the side, looking out the windshield of the Gummi with curious eyes.

"Huh?"

"Hey, wait a minute…Is the ship moving all on its own?" Sora asked.

Goofy nodded and he walked over to Donald's chair to look at the screen in front of the short tempered mage. The King's guard looked over Donald's shoulder as the duck quickly figured out the ship's course. Twilight and I looked at one another, giving a weary sigh as we figured it out as well. Alas, a hero's job is never done.

"Yup! Looks like we're headed toward Hollow Bastion." Donald announced.

"It's going to be a nine-"

He trailed off for a moment and turned to look over at Twilight and me suspiciously. We smiled at him innocently as we could. I just blinked at him owlishly and waited for him to continue but the suspicious look on his face made it rather hard to look innocent as the two of us just sat there, waiting for him to go on.

"How did you know it was going to be a nine hour trip?" He asked

I blinked and shrugged, internally wincing, at Donald who turned back to the front and allowed the ship to steer itself. I watched him for a few more seconds before turning back to dealing out cards. Twilight and I played cards for a few hours, listening to the radio. I stared at her, my expression 'WTF' as she was singing Bohemian Rhapsody… randomly. It wasn't even on the radio, it was a commercial for…fertilizer.

The guys had all turned around and were staring at her their expressions similar to my own. I sighed and shook my head, grabbing Sora and pulled him into one of the seats. I started to deal cards again as Goofy joined us and then Donald soon after, leaving the ship to go where ever it was going. I picked the cards back up, reshuffled and dealt to all five of us.

As the hours passed we continued to get closer to Hollow Bastion until we eventually reached our destination. We landed and started to head over to the Borough. It felt good to walk around. I was stiff from the flight and my muscles ached with each step I took. I knew they'd warm up after a little bit of walking so I just let it go.

"I wonder what's up." Sora said curiously.

As we turned the corner we saw that Merlin's door was open and three Heartless Soldiers were coming out of it. Twilight stiffened at my side and I couldn't help a sneer when I saw the dark little creatures clunking around. We all started running towards the Heartless, eager to destroy them without a single question in our heads.

"Uh-oh!" Donald muttered.

Suddenly the Heartless disappeared. We slowed our pace down until we were jogging and stopped running all together. We watched the spot where the Heartless stood, almost as if we were waiting for them to come back and after a moment and Sora turned to us. There was determination and worry burning in his eyes as he watched us with his bright sky blue eyes.

"C'mon." He urged.

We all nodded, agreeing fully with what he said and ran into the house to see Merlin on sitting on the ground, leaning against a stack of books. Merlin adjusted his glasses and stood up as we ran over to him. He turned to us clearing his throat. He seemed rather miffed and slightly bedraggled as he tried to straighten himself up.

"Well, now…took your time, did you?" Merlin sighed.

"Oh, was it you who summoned us, Merlin?" Goofy asked.

Merlin nodded slightly and spread his arms just a little. Twilight covered her hand behind her mouth behind her hand. I rolled my eyes at the wizard's antics. With a sigh I crossed my arms, smiling good-naturedly at the old man before me. He was trying to be all dramatic about it but all he was coming off as was a silly old man.

"Yes, yes… but it seems I used too much power in doing so, and those infernal Heartless…" Merlin said.

"So, what's up?" Sora asked.

"Well, I happened to stumble across this in the Zero District." Merlin explained.

The older man stroked his beard once and then with a wave of his hand and in a poof of smoke a book appeared in it. He plucked it out of the air with perfect ease and such nonchalance it was like it was something we should have expected almost every day. He handed it to Donald and Goofy and Sora looked over his shoulder at it.

"Pooh's storybook!" Sora cried.

Twilight and I looked over Sora's and Goofy's shoulders to look at the book in Donald's hands. It was just as the game had shown us and I couldn't help the grin that crept across my lips. I looked over my shoulder to see that Twilight was leaning towards the book, totally enthralled by it and child-like amusement had lit up her eyes.

"That's right. I know you're a good friend of Winnie the Pooh, Sora…that's why I summoned you. And while I was doing so I was attacked by the Heartless." Merlin explained, "Of course, I fought back with some rather powerful magic, but then I began to fear the book would be damaged, so I...Oh! Now, just a moment. Leon and the others need to hear this too. I-I'd better go find them. Be back in a jiffy."

He vanished in a puff of smoke that made me give a slight cough as I moved away from Sora. The boy turned to Donald with a thoughtful look on his face as he began thinking about Pooh and the story book that so temptingly sat in Donald's hands. It was almost like the book was mocking Sora, begging him to jump in and go visit the happy yellow bear.

"I wonder how Pooh's doing." Sora mused.

"Wanna find out?" Donald asked.

"Yeah!" Sora cheered.

I grabbed Twilight and moved her behind Donald as the duck opened the book and held it up to Sora. Sora got ready to jump in the book but Goofy obviously thought this was a bad idea. He reached towards the boy, trying to stop him but I knew that once Sora had his mind set on something there was no going back on it.

"Sora!" Goofy warned.

The boy paused momentarily looking at tall dog. Then he looked over his shoulder, making sure that Merlin was no where in sight before taking another step towards the book. Goofy grimaced, knowing full well that Sora was not going to listen to reason no matter how much he begged or nagged the teenaged Keyblade wielder.

"Cover for me, okay?" Sora asked.

We watch as he jumped into the book. I sighed and looked over at Twilight, raising an eyebrow. Twilight had her back turned to me, but I could easily see that she had folded her arms and was pouting in an attempt to look miserable by my actions. I rolled my eyes, knowing she was going to survive, even if she wasn't happy with me at the moment.

"Why couldn't I go too?" Twilight whined.

I blinked and shook my head before turning my attention back to the front door. I pointed at the door where Heartless were starting to show up as if saying 'that's why'. Donald placed the book onto a stand and turned around, quacking loudly in surprise at the Heartless coming in the door. My sword appeared in my hand and I started herding the Heartless out of the room, Goofy and Twilight not far behind me as Donald started to summon Sora back.

As soon as he finished that bit of magic he joined us outside, defending against the attacking Heartless. We heard a thump from inside the house and I glanced back for a moment before sweeping my sword into another Shadow that had actually gotten the nerve to try and attack me. As per usual they seemed to avoid me, rather than attack, swarming Twilight almost like eager puppies looking forward to a treat. Donald hearing the thump yelled back towards the house.

"Sora! Hurry up!" Donald yelled.

It didn't take long for the boy to join us outside. Goofy glanced back at the brunette. I shook my head, knowing we weren't going to be able to prevent Pooh's book from being damaged. It was a shame but it couldn't be helped, besides we all knew that Sora was going to be able to help Pooh remember everything anyways and on the way he'd learn a life lesson from the bear.

"Did ya bring the book, Sora?" Goofy asked.

"Hey!" Sora yelled.

I glanced sharply over at the Shadows who were about to attack Twilight darkness fluttering around my hand. The Shadows immediately backed off, scurrying a few feet away, almost as if they were afraid of me. I smirked darkly. Let them be afraid. It made things a heck of a lot easier on me when we were fighting. Donald jumped next to Sora pointing over at some Heartless with Pooh's book.

"Give that back!" Donald

We gave them the chase. Goofy, Twilight, and I close behind. Running forward I drove my sword through the back of one of the Soldier Heartless making it vanish as the others destroyed targets of their own. As the others finished I walked over to where the book was laying on the ground, bending down and picking it up gently. The others gathered around me. Sora peered anxiously over my shoulder, inspecting the damaged for himself.

"Think it's okay?" Sora asked.

"Gawrsh, maybe ya better go back and make sure Pooh's all right." Goofy said.

"What about Merlin?" Donald asked.

'_That didn't stop you before.'_ I thought rather annoyed by it. I held the book a little tighter, not really knowing why but I held it to protect it a little better; call it my inner bookworm. Goofy glanced over at the duck, contemplating the choices. He seemed torn between listening to what Merlin said and doing the right thing and going to go check on Pooh. Eventually the right thing won the moral challenge.

"Well, I guess we could explain…" Goofy mused.

"Great!" Sora cried.

Sora looked up from the book in my hands. He was nodding, looking very relieved. Without a word I handed the book over to Donald and moved behind him as he held it open for Sora again. We walked back into the house to wait for Merlin who showed up a few seconds later in a poof of smoke. He looked around and asked

"Where's Sora?" Merlin asked.

I pointed to the book as Donald and Goofy started to explain what happened. We all looked over at the book as Sora emerged from it. Merlin tried to look at Sora sternly, like a father scolding his child for doing something wrong but he couldn't help the amused smile on his lips as he looked at the rather surprised Keyblade wielder.

"Couldn't be bothered to wait up for an old wizard, eh?" Merlin teased.

Sora scratched the back of his head sheepishly, not meeting the wizard's eye. Twilight and I chuckled at his reaction as did Merlin. Sora could be so predictable sometimes it wasn't even funny but at the same time it was. All in all he had a good heart but he was still a kid. Sometime he sounded so old it wasn't funny and it was disheartening to see someone as young as he was acting like an adult.

"Sorry about that…" Sora murmured.

"How are things in there?" The wizard asked seriously.

"Well…Pooh seems to have forgotten all about me. And not just me… all his other friends, too." Sora explained.

"I was afraid of that…" Merlin muttered.

Merlin placed a hand on his chin, stroking it for a moment. He walked over to the book picking it up and flipping through the pages, inspecting the damage. Needless to say it wasn't looking good for Pooh but again, Twilight and I knew better. We knew Sora would help Pooh and the story would end with happily ever after… The End.

"I suspect it has something to do with those pages the Heartless stole. You'll have to collect the torn pages and repair the book to put things right," Merlin explained, "This book is one of the world's most cherished elements. I'd been meaning to tell Leon I'd found it, but perhaps we should keep it between us for now."

I smiled _'I wonder what he would do if he found out though.'_ It wouldn't be pretty and I knew that Sora would get chewed out, big time if Leon did find out. Aerith alone would give him the lecture of a lifetime for being so careless. It would be in our best interest to keep this from the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee for as long as we could.

"We will!" Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Twilight said in unison.

Looking over at me I gave the wizard a nod that I would keep it a secret and Merlin smiled. I wasn't really going to cheer my pledge to the matter like the others had and Merlin seemed to understand it so he took my nod as a confirmation that I would do as the others had promised. I smiled bitterly at the book in Merlin's hands.

"Good, good…Now, the book isn't all that's cherished…This is for you, Sora," Merlin said.

Digging around in his pocket he produced something and after a moment or two he found what he was looking for. What ever it was he pressed it into Sora's hand. Instantly Sora looked down at it, examining it and flipping it over so he could get a look at all the details. I grinned when I saw it, as did Twilight.

"What is it?" Sora asked.

"Simply concentrate on it with all your heart, and you need only say the word to summon an ally who will help in times of need," Merlin said.

"Like Simba and Mushu did, the last time we were here?" Goofy asked.

"Precisely. Now go forth, with your friends by your side!" Merlin said confirming this.

Sora nodded and pocketed the summoning charm. He smiled at Merlin, grateful for the gift the elderly wizard had bestowed upon him. I rolled my eyes. Sora was acting as if Christmas had come early because of the gift. I really couldn't wait until we got to Halloween Town if he got so happy over a charm like this.

"Thanks, Merlin. We're worried about Pooh, so we'll be back once we've found those torn pages." Sora said.

I watched as the guys ran outside but before Twilight and I could leave Merlin held up his hands. The two of us stopped. I turned around to look at the old wizard quizzically as Twilight stared at him confused. Both of us held our ground and didn't move an inch as the wizard stared at us through older, weary eyes.

"Just a moment dears." Merlin called.

"But the guys…" She trailed off.

I placed a hand on her shoulder. Neither of us wanted to be left on Hollow Bastion. It was nothing against the world or anything. We just wanted to be where all the action was, besides the next world was one Twilight wasn't going to want to miss, not for anything this world had to offer. I smirked darkly, thinking of all the things I could do to tease her.

"The guys will wait for us." I assured her.

I looked over at Merlin and tilted my head as I watched him sit down. In that moment he looked much older, older than I thought he was. I found myself wondering if they had ever mentioned his age anywhere but then dismissed the idea. Besides, it was too rude to go and ask him just how old he was. It was probably a topic he wanted to avoid.

"Through your journey's you must have discovered new powers, may I ask what they are?" Merlin asked.

"All I am is a magnet for Heartless. Ghost has learned more than I have." Twilight sighed.

I watched her eyes. They were unreadable as she looked down at the ground. I looked back at Merlin waiting for him to say something about this or to tell us a way to keep her safer from the Heartless but he had nothing to say about the topic. This both annoyed me and made me sigh. I wanted to keep Twilight safe. She didn't need the constant danger.

"Ghost?" Merlin prompted.

"Um…I can hide people in shadows and sense when a portal is forming. I can create an orb of darkness and use it as a weapon." I said.

'_I can also apparently create portals…but that could've been a onetime thing and it's probably a good idea to keep that one to myself.'_ I didn't really want to be accused of being a Nobody. The idea itself was laughable. Merlin nodded and intertwined his hands together, leaning forward he sighed, running fine fingers through his beard.

"Yes, all powers of darkness have grown considerably in the realm of light. These powers are connected to your emotions and how you react to situations that you are involved in," He mused, "Yet because of your abilities it makes you vulnerable to the darkness. You above all must be the most careful about giving in to the dark."

My eyebrows furrowed slightly as I listened. I sighed as I recognized the same words, floating through the sentence. I had heard this before! As nice as it was to get a little explanation I was getting annoyed at how redundant it seemed to be. I needed knew information to keep me moving and give me a little more to work with.

"That's the second time someone's said something like that to me." I muttered.

"Who was the first?" Twilight asked.

"Yen Sid." I replied.

"Then he must have informed you of the legend?" Merlin asked.

"Legend?" I asked, confused.

Even Twilight seemed confused when he said this. It would have been nice to know something about a legend and yet Yin Sid had kept me in the dark about it. I shook my head, wondering why the man had decided to leave this out. It seemed pretty important to me but alas I guess things like this weren't important to high and mighty wizards like him.

"There is a legend that two women from another world will come into our own with the gift of light and the curse of dark." He explained.

"Why is your power always a gift and mine always a curse?" I sighed.

"Maybe it has to do with the preconception that darkness is evil and that light is good?" She shrugged.

We both turned back to Merlin as he cleared his throat to get our attention back. Twilight instantly bowed her head while sheepish smiles crossed over our faces. Twilight scuffed her shoe into the floor, trying to look sweet and innocent. Merlin shook his head with a small smile at her antics. Slowly we all looked back up at one another with a baited breath.

"Ahem. Well as I was saying the legend says that the User of Darkness shall be tested and forced to decide between… something." Merlin continued.

"That was vague." I muttered.

"I am afraid that legends are often vague." Merlin agreed.

"Does it say anything about the User of Light?" I asked quickly.

"I'm afraid that the pages about the User of Light have been lost to the ages. If we had those pages we would've had more to go on but I'm afraid that all that we have is on the User of Darkness but I'm still searching for those missing pages." The wizard sighed.

I nodded and both Twilight and I started to head out. Twilight shook her head and sighed looking back at me as I walked with my head down thinking over what Merlin had just said. It was a lot to process and I knew I wasn't going to get a decent night's sleep because of it. I had to think of something that the legend meant.

"C'mon we've got to catch up to the guys!" She said cheerfully

I nodded with a slight smile, pulling my sunglasses over my eyes hiding them from view. It didn't take long before the gummi ship came into view the guys looking around, Donald tapping his foot impatiently, as they waited. Sora and Goofy were a little calmer, eagerly chatting away with one another as Donald fumed.

"Where have you two been?" Donald demanded.

"Merlin wanted to talk to us for a minute." I explained.

Donald huffed and got onto the ship, Twilight and I following. I stared out the window as we took off going over what Merlin had said again. I wasn't really focusing on what was outside the window as the thoughts that were bouncing around in my head. It was going to be a long night and with a sigh I began to make myself comfortable in my chair.

"What's wrong with Ghost?" Sora asked Twilight.

She glanced over at me, as I propped my head on my fist still staring out the window. She shook her head at the boy and spun the dial of the radio, playing around and not really focusing on the music, not meeting Sora's eyes. Her eyes lit up when she found a station she liked and she smiled to herself, conveying that she had found it.

"Don't worry about it. Merlin just gave her a lot to think about." Twilight said.

I glanced over to the front of the ship to see that all of the guys were staring at me. I lifted my head slightly and quirked a smile. It didn't reach my eyes but I knew that as long as I kept smiling I could assure them, and perhaps myself, that I was indeed alright. But it hardly seemed like anything was 'right' anymore. Nothing really made sense.

"Hey, is that world getting closer?" I asked.

Sora gasped and spun around to see that there wasn't a world in front of us as I laughed at his reaction. I looked out the window again for a moment before sighing and straightening up. I stretched slightly _'There's no point in worrying about this now, so get over it and move on'._ I stood up and leaned against the back of Donald's chair looking over the duck's shoulder.

"Where we headed?" I asked

"Olympus Coliseum." Donald replied.

I studied the map for a moment with an analytical eye. It was a decent ways away and if Beast's Castle was nine hours away it would mean that the Coliseum much, much further away than that. I sighed wearily, hoping to catch a break and get some rest. Twilight nodded, seeming to understand the logic for my sigh.

"That's an awfully long way to go. How're we going to work this?" I asked.

"We're gonna go in shifts. Sora'll stay up first, than Donald, than I get the morning." Goofy explained.

"Aren't you supposed to have two people up, just in case?" I asked.

"Normally we would but because of the limited number of people…" Donald nodded

I sighed and looked over at Twilight. She gave me a sort of half smile, as if asking what to do with the situation at hand. I knew that I had to step up and take charge or else we'd all be run into the ground by the time we reached the Coliseum. Then what good would we be when we were running about in the Underworld?

"Twilight why don't you stay up with Sora and make sure he doesn't plow us into any worlds…" I sighed.

"Hey!" Sora cried indignantly.

"…And wake me up before you go to sleep." I continued.

She nodded and switched with Goofy and Donald grabbed a chair in the back. I sat back into my seat again and closed my eyes, going to sleep quickly. It was a rather peaceful and dreamless sleep. For that I was rather grateful. I didn't need my dreams to be plagued by 'legends' either. Though, I was glad that Merlin told me.

* * *

I opened my eyes groggily as I felt Twilight give my shoulder a light shake. I nodded and stood up as Donald groaned and moved into the driver's seat. I sat in his normal seat and glanced over at the duck, sighing I stood up and walked quietly past the sleeping occupants into the small kitchen. Opening one of the cupboards I pulled out two mugs and started heating up the water.

It didn't take long to heat and I poured it in quickly before adding the mixings to make hot chocolate. Taking the two steaming mugs back into the cockpit I leaned down next to Donald and smiled offering the mug to him. He looked at it for a moment before taking it. I nodded and turned to my own, taking a drink of the hot beverage.

"Thanks." He said.

I sat back down in his usual seat sipping the mug and keeping track of where we were.

* * *

Looking over at the duck as he stood up and stretched I glanced at the clock to see his shift was over. I moved back into the kitchen taking out a new mug and making more hot chocolate. As soon as it was finished I refilled my own mug and filled Goofy's up before taking it out to the new pilot. I smiled as I handed him the mug, sitting down in Donald's normal chair I glanced back at the others who were sleeping, I placed my now empty mug onto the side table and dozed off.

I woke up an hour later hearing movement coming from the back. Sora had woken up and was stretching as he came forward. He looked over to me as I checked the map to see how much longer we had left. I looked over my shoulder as he leaned against the chair I was sitting in I twisted, cracking my back in the process

"How much longer till we get there?" He asked.

"About 20 minutes." I responded, "Could you wake the others please?"

He nodded and I moved to the back of the ship, taking my empty mug into the kitchen and cleaning my mug in the sink. As I placed it back into the cupboard I jumped barley keeping hold of the mug in my hand as I heard someone yelling, "Tacos!"

I rolled my eyes and gently placed the mug down _'I guess Twilight's up.'_ I smiled as I walked out the guys, Sora now driving, staring at her stunned. I laughed as I sat down and prepared to land.


	13. The Trouble with Gods

**Hey guys sorry for the long wait, school has eaten both Kita-san's and my own life. Thanks for being so patient with us. I also apologize for not actually responding to all of your reviews but college life has been driving me insane recently. :D Shout outs for: Anexi, animelovercillas, purplekitsune-chan, Kairi the Strong, and Keiko Sahara. You guys have all of my appreciation for the support! XD On with the story!**

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****Chapter 13: The trouble with Gods...**

As I looked around I sighed before looking back at Sora with an 'oh c'mon' look. The place that we had landed in was dark and dreary. It was what one would imagine the Underworld would look like. Goofy turned to ask Sora, who seemed as confused as the rest of us. It was written on his face and portrayed in his very posture as he looked around our new scenery.

"Are you sure this is the coliseum?" Goofy asked.

"It's that way!" Donald declared.

The duck pointed and started to walk forward, not really knowing where he was heading but pretending like he did. I look at where he was pointing and spotted immediately spotted the stairs with light streaming down them. I glanced over at Twilight who had turned slightly green as she watched them with slow, almost dazed eyes.

"You okay?" I asked.

"I don't feel so good." She admitted.

She shook her head slightly and leaned on my shoulder. I could feel her already clammy skin against my shirt and I shifted, a little uncomfortable but still allowing her to stay by me. I looked down at her in concern, '_Twilight.'_ She looked like she couldn't really put up much of a fight if she were to go a round or two with someone.

"If this is how the Underworld affects you here, how are you going to be able to handle going further in?" I asked, worried.

She shook her head slightly but straightened up. She placed a smile on her face as she started to follow the guys, pretending that everything was fine. I closed my eyes, trying not to look at her, feeling the guilt already welling up in my stomach because she was ill. It was too dangerous for Twilight to be there but she had insisted.

"Oh… Guess we were a little off." Sora said.

We stopped as we heard a terrified scream from behind us. As we turned around we spotted a brunette woman running from a pack of Rabid Dog Heartless. Sora spotted the Heartless chasing her almost instantly and yet he didn't draw his weapon like he normally did. The Heartless pounced on her, mercilessly.

"Heartless!" Sora cried.

I roll my eyes as I ran past him towards the fallen woman, the others following me. The Heartless spotting us turned and ran off, leaving the woman alone without a fight. Sora bent down slightly as she got up offering her a hand, she glanced over at him. There was an odd look on her face as she examined us.

"Thanks, but…I'm fine." She murmured.

I crossed my arms as she looked up. Her expression changed to one of shock as she spotted Sora, standing over her, worried. Standing up fully, she brushed some imaginary dirt off of her toga. Then she crossed her arms, trying to cover up the even that had just taken place. I could see the embarrassment shining in her eyes.

"And you're supposed to be?" She asked sarcastically.

I rolled my eyes as Sora and his obliviousness once again won him over. He either didn't realize that she was being rude or he just brushed it aside. So instead of commenting on her snide remark, he introduced everyone, jerking a thumb at himself, obviously introducing himself first. I just shook my head. The shadow of a smile traced my lips.

"I'm Sora…" He said and then he gestured to the rest of us, "…He's Donald, that's Goofy, she's Twilight and that's Ghost. We came to see how Hercules is doing."

"You know Wonderboy?" She asked, disbelief ringing in her voice.

She looked at all five of us and I raised my eyebrow at her, almost expecting an answer for her doubt in us. Donald propped his hands on his hips and puffed out his chest in an attempt to look a little more dashing, more heroic in a way. He only succeeded in making himself look rather funny and hero didn't exactly come to mind as I watched him. I nearly laughed.

"Yeah, 'cause we're heroes, too!" Donald said proudly.

Goofy leaned down to the duck with a slight laugh. Twilight smiled, almost expectantly as we waited for what Goofy would say next. Seeing Donald having his bubble popped was rather amusing at times, but it would get old, eventually, unless we mixed it up a little. But I knew it was going to be a long, long time before ruffling his feathers got old.

"Ya mean junior heroes, Donald." Goofy corrected.

I sighed drawing the older woman's attention to me. She stared at Twilight and I, almost expectantly but there was a hint that she was trying to hide the obvious amusement in her eyes from Sora, Donald and Goofy. Twilight and I exchanged grins; knowing how easily amusing the boys could be and Meg seemed to understand just where we stood on the topic.

"The boys know Herc, Twilight and I on the other hand, don't." I said.

She nodded slightly before turning back to the others with a slight laugh.

"Looks like we have a friend in common. Name's Megara. My friends call me Meg." The woman said.

"So how's Herc?" Sora asked with a grin.

Meg tilted her head slightly. Then she looked away completely, hugging herself as if to keep herself from falling to pieces in front of us. She couldn't even meet any of us in the eyes. It was almost like she was ashamed. Or was she embarrassed? I knew she felt helpless since she couldn't really do anything to help Hercules. I couldn't really tell.

"Wonderboy? Well, he's duking it out at the Coliseum every day. You know, 'a hero's work is never done' and all that. He's ready to drop, but he keeps on fighting." Meg said bitterly, "Even Wonderboy has his limits, though. These opponents are bad news…special deliveries from Hades himself…"

"Hades?!" Donald cried.

Meg nodded as Donald jumped up and down. I rolled my eyes, smirking at the duck. It was hard to believe he was supposed to be the adult like figure on our travels. The idea was almost laughable since he and Sora acted like two year olds so often. It almost felt like a babysitting job than a journey to save the worlds and everything in them.

"Right. Lord of the Underworld. I was on my way to see him. Maybe I can get Hades to give Wonderboy a breather. If anything happens to that kid…" Meg explained.

"Gawrsh… Sounds like you're more than just friends!" Goofy said.

Meg blushed, knowing that her little 'secret' had been found out in a matter of seconds under the ever watchful eye of Goofy. I smirked at her reaction. Nothing seemed safe when Goofy was around. He was rather good at reading people. Secrets were out the door when he was around and that made me a little nervous. Twilight and I were going to have to be rather convincing when it came to Demyx and Axel. We were going to have to fight for the two Nobodies, defend their existences or risk losing them, if it ever came down to it.

"Oh…uh…I mean…" Meg stammered, blushing darkly.

"We'll go have a little talk with Hades. I'd hate for anything to happen to you on your way to see him." Sora interrupted.

Meg stared at the boy amazed for a moment, almost as if she were asking herself if he said what she thought he said. Sora was kind, kind enough to do anything for anyone at the mere mention of a problem. He wore his heart on his sleeve and could empathize with a lot of people because of his experiences. It was hard to watch but also slightly endearing at the same time.

"You really want to do that? Well, it looks like you know what you're doing. I guess I'll take you up on that offer. But…let's keep this whole chat-with-Hades thing our little secret, okay?"

"Our lips are sealed!" Sora agreed, nodding.

I looked over at Twilight. She was looking as pale as ever and her lips were set in a grim frown as she looked at the path we would have to follow in order to get to Hades. By the time we'd get there she'd be so tired that a single Heartless Ant could take her out. The last thing we needed was for her to lose her heart to such a minor threat.

"You sure you want to go in, there's an extremely high probability that it's only going to get worse?" I asked.

She swallowed and nodded resolutely before we started to follow the guys into the Cave of the Dead. I blinked as I saw a cloaked figure run past us. Both Twilight and I caught one another's eye and start giggling, trying to be quiet. Donald also spotted Demyx, running past us, with his hood up. He pointed at our dashing friend, squawking in surprise.

"The Organization!" Donald cried.

"Yeah." Sora said, confirming the duck's cry.

As we continued to walk through the passage ways we were attacked on occasion by Heartless mostly Rabid Dogs and the occasional Large Body. As we entered the Inner Chamber we spotted Demyx running towards us, causing the boys to screech to a halt, Twilight and I stopping slightly behind and to the left of them. Sora and the boys got ready for a fight but the organization member just right past them.

"Run! Run away!" Demyx cried.

His cry was in a fairly high pitched panicked voice, that made not smiling or just flat out laughing really hard. Twilight and I tried very hard not to burst out laughing but as soon as we caught the other's eye, knowing the other wasn't going to last much longer, we fell onto the ground in hysterical laughter, as Demyx ran into a portal that faded behind him. Sora and the guys stared after him confused.

"Okay…?" Sora said uncertainly.

I looked over at Twilight and gestured towards my hair which got us laughing again. **(A/N: go read the story He Ran...From...The Underworld by JaceyRae on deviantart to get the joke.)** After Twilight and I finally calmed down, we started walking again though between the two of us there was still some quiet laughter. All laughter stopped when we entered the Valley of the Dead though, I glanced worriedly over at Twilight who was starting to get sluggish. I gripped her elbow, holding her upright so that she wouldn't fall over the edge of the cavern and into the green vortex of death.

Donald and Goofy looked around obviously frightened of their location. I noticed Donald shiver as he glanced around at our surroundings. It was a bit creepy, reminding me very much of Halloween but that would be different once we reached Halloweentown. That would be a lot of fun, once we got there. Twilight would be just as excited as Sora would be.

"I'm scared too, Donald." Goofy murmured.

Sora looked around for the God of Death. The boy had a steely resolve burning in his eyes as he puffed out his chest, glaring at our surroundings. Donald and Goofy didn't seem so sure of themselves as they looked at their daring and defiant 'leader' standing tall as if he had no fear of the dark under lord. Once he died, which would probably be a long time after all of Kingdom Hearts and everything, Hades might get his hands on him and then Sora would regret being so spirited.

"Hades, come out!" Sora demanded, loudly.

His voice echoed around us, giving a much needed dramatic effect as we looked around, waiting for the God to show himself to us. I rolled my eyes '_Yes Sora a god shall come out simply because you yell for him. At the moment he's probably resurrecting Auron.' _I thought, rather annoyed. We started to walk across the bridge my grip firm on Twilight. Sora and I exchanged glances when we saw a cave at the end.

We ran in and spotted Hades and Auron fighting. Sora gasped when he saw this, obviously not expecting to see Hades fighting someone. Twilight looked over at me, gauging my reaction. I didn't even react to what I saw before us. Auron didn't even spare us a glance. Instead he kept his focus on the dark god before him, solely focused on his battle for freedom.

"Hades!" Donald cried.

The god looked up at us, the flames on him turning blue, showing the surprise he felt. I narrowed my eyes, glaring slightly at the god. Hades could be an annoying man, wicked and cold hearted to the core. Nothing could warm the heart of the god and it was no wonder he was more of a being of darkness. Even the Heartless obeyed his commands because there was such a small trace of light in his heart.

"You again?" Hades asked surprised.

Auron in his trademark red trench coat forced Hades back with a sweep of his very large sword. The older man turned towards us slightly, almost reprimanding us with his eyes for just standing there and doing nothing. He held the sword in his hands as if it weighed as light as a feather. It looked heavy enough from where I was standing.

"Fight!" The older warrior ordered.

The older man dashed forward sweeping his sword down, Hades catching the blade before tossing it back. Auron jumped back resting the sword on his shoulder, Hades seizing the opportunity punched Auron to the ground his hand on fire. The blue man conjured two fireballs aiming them at Auron. Sora raced in between the two fighters. He surprised Hades enough to lose the fireballs, as Sora kept his eyes on the god.

"Get up!" Sora cried to the older man.

I fastened my grip onto Twilight. Quickly and efficiently I led her over to the wall, setting her down so that she didn't get hurt. She seemed to understand that she just simply didn't have the strength to keep up with the heat of the battle, no pun intended. She was too weak and Hades was a powerful man, I had to give him that.

"Stay back." I murmured.

She nodded as I ran into the fight. The only people able to inflict any sort of damage to the god were Auron and I. The boys jumping back as the two of us kept Hades busy. I watched them out of the corner of my eye but was keeping most of my focus on Hades more than anything, knowing that the god posed a good threat against us.

"Something's wrong!" Donald cried, frantic.

Sora started backing up slowly, something akin to confusion in his eyes. He seemed to find it hard to hold his blade up and I could tell he was growing weak, like Twilight did. I could see the darkness hovering around them, sapping them of their strength. The heroes would soon figure this out but I said nothing. So I resorted to glaring at Hades some more, even though it would result in nothing.

"I feel kinda funny…" Sora admitted.

I glanced back at the three of them before quickly turning my attention back to Hades. The man just smirked darkly, tauntingly at us, as if mocking us for our weaknesses. I wanted to fight him, to show him we weren't weak but I knew enough not to try to take him on alone. Hades was powerful, strong enough to have a bunch of monsters conveniently lying around his Underworld.

"That's right! See, that's the thing. In the Underworld, heroes are zeroes…comes with the territory." Hades said, mockingly.

He summoned two fireballs and charged at the weakened group but Auron got in the way forcing Hades to disappear in a poof of smoke. I nodded my thanks to the man before I ran over to Twilight, who was slumped up against the wall. Quickly I slung her arm over my shoulder, hefting her to her feet once more.

"Go now!" Auron ordered.

"But I've gotta talk to Hades!" Sora insisted.

Slowly I began leading Twilight towards the door, like Auron had ordered us to do. I looked over my shoulder to see Hades shoving his fingers into his ears, making makeshift earplugs, and ignoring the protests of the Keyblade wielder. The look of outrage and utter disgust on Sora's face alone was enough for me to smirk.

"What was that?" Hades asked

I snorted amused with the god, whom of which was lowering himself by resorting to acting like a two year old, causing Twilight to look up at me. There was a look of disbelief on her face and weary eyes swept over my face. I just continued to chuckle at the god before us. I didn't really know the next time I'd find amusement in something as ridiculous as this.

"How can you laugh at that?" She asked, rather surprised.

"Well, at least the God of Death has a sense of humor." I said.

I smirked, as if defending my viewpoint of the topic but knew that I didn't really need to. She gave a tired chuckle as Sora charged the god. Auron blocked the younger boy off as Hades starts creating fireballs again. Both Donald and Goofy passed the two of us as we headed out the door. Glancing back I saw Auron practically dragging Sora back with him.

"We can't fight him here! We have to go… now!" Auron said,

Sora didn't move as Auron turned to go. He looked like he was contemplating whether or not to go. He wanted to talk to Hades but the god would have nothing of it. Then there was the growing weakness that was seeping into his body as he stood there. He grimaced, torn between the two necessities but not really knowing what to do about either.

"Sora, move your ass _now_!" I barked.

Suddenly Sora started moving. The boy started running as Hades threw the fireballs with Sora barely dodging them. After leaving the chamber Sora and Goofy push the large doors closed behind them, hoping to seal off the god. Donald tried to catch his breath quickly turning around when he heard the doors close

"Is he gone?" Donald panted.

Auron glanced at the duck before staring at the doors again. I wondered, to myself, if he could sense that Hades was coming. I glanced down at Twilight. She was still as pale as ever. A light layer of sweat dotted her brow, showing how much this place was really affecting her. The sooner we got that Olympus Stone the better.

"Don't count on it." Auron said.

"Huh?" Was Sora's intelligent reply.

"We're in his realm at the moment Sora." I explained.

I rolled my eyes at the look of realization on Sora's face. I stiffened when I saw a black cloud of smoke next to Sora. I jerked back slightly as Hades appeared next to Sora. The god looked anything but amused at our intrusion. His arms were folded across his chest and he stared down at us with dark, hate filled eyes.

"Leaving so soon?" He asked.

We started to run but a barrier got in the way and as I was supporting Twilight I couldn't go and break it down. Auron stopped inches from my side, as if he had been expecting the entire battle. Running away may not look good but sometimes it needs to be done. Live to fight another day.

"Damn!" I swore, under my breath.

I shifted Twilight's weight onto my left side and summoned my sword in my right hand, keeping her on the side that the heartless couldn't attack from. I hissed in frustration as my back hit the barrier, turning my attention to the attacking Lance Soldier. Blocking the lance with my sword I pushed it back when it suddenly disappeared along with the barrier behind me.

I looked up at Auron and nodded my thanks before ducking down quickly and thrusting my sword under his arm hitting the Lance Soldier that was about to attack him from behind. Dragging Twilight with me I moved to the next barrier putting my back up to it and keeping the Heartless away from Twilight, Auron sticking close to us as I didn't have full mobility at the moment.

We continued on that way until we reached the Inner Chamber of the Cave of the Dead. I set Twilight down on the ground and crouched in front of her placing a cool hand on her forehead. I looked at her worriedly as she reached up and pulled my hand down, I blinked as she gave a slight smile and leaned against the wall. I stood up and looked at the rest of the group assessing the damage; overall we had gotten off alright. The boys were on the ground gasping for breath, Auron standing nearby.

"You're really good. Are you some kind of hero?" Sora asked.

Auron shook his head sadly, bitterly. I could see all of his regrets, all of his remorse engraved into his very posture. It was heart wrenching to watch him batter himself up over one tiny little thing that landed him in a horrible place like this. This, I realized as I looked around, this was a fate worse than death itself. This was eternity.

"No, I'm no hero…I'm just an…" Auron trailed off, unable to continue.

"Huh?" Sora asked.

I watched as the man contemplated what he was going to say for a moment '_Auron… you're a hero, you just made a mistake that one time but I guess the fayth really didn't care did they?' _I wanted to ask. Instead I bit my tongue to keep the thought inside. There was no need showing everyone what I knew before I needed to, perhaps eventually but not now.

"Auron." The man finally said.

Sora and Goofy look at each other confused for a moment, not quite understanding what he meant. I shook my head rolling my eyes. Twilight snorted at the expressions on our comrades faces. She was moving a little more freely now, showing that the further out of the Underworld we were the more strength she had. But both of us knew she was in no condition to fight.

"My name." Auron explained slightly impatient.

Sora stood up, nodding as if he understood Auron's behavior completely. I shook my head, disagreeing. I doubted that he did. He didn't really seem to understand that Auron was a man of few words. The man liked to keep it short, sweet and to the point. Unlike Sora who would drag everything out, longer than it needed to be drug.

"I'm Sora." Sora said.

Though the younger boy had stood up he didn't stay that way for long as Donald jumped on him. The poor Keyblade master struggled to keep his balance as Donald leaned over him to get into the face of the older, wiser, and stronger heavy blade wielding warrior monk. The man just stared at the duck passively, almost void of all emotion as he watched the spectacle before him.

"Donald." Donald proclaimed.

Goofy joined Donald on top of Sora with a wave. Now Donald and Sora were struggling to keep Goofy up as he cheerfully greeted the man in front of them. Twilight gave a soft laugh as we watched our comrades', less than hero-like, behaviors. _'And these were the three who begged Phil to let them become true heroes,'_ I thought with an amused sigh.

"Goofy!" He cried.

Auron looked over at me and Twilight and I raised an eyebrow. He looked as if he were waiting for us to do the same as our male comrades. I just shook my head. Holding my hands in the air, I proclaimed innocence to whatever act he thought I was going to commit. Twilight nodded, agreeing with my silent statement.

"I'm not going on that pile." I told him, "Sora's gonna drop in 3…2…1."

Right on cue Sora fell down and the three of them sprawled on the ground. I laughed at them but made no move to help them back to their feet. If they got themselves hurt on their own account it was their fault, not mine so it wasn't my responsibility to play nanny over them. They'd have to learn for themselves, eventually.

"I'm Ghost and she's Twilight." I said.

He nodded towards us, acknowledging our names, before looking at the pile at his feet. Somehow the three of them had managed to get themselves tangled up and were struggling for freedom. All they managed to do was squash one another as they wriggled and writhed on the ground below. I shook my head as Twilight covered her grin with her hand.

"It seems we were fated to meet. Maybe you need a guardian." He said.

Sora grunted and pushed the other two off of him, on his hands and knees as he looked at the older warrior with a look of incredulously on his face. Donald and Goofy fell to the ground with a grunt but neither moved as quickly as the boy did. The three looked rather glad that they were no longer tangled together like a puzzle.

"Guardian? Thanks, but no thanks." Sora retorted.

Sora started to walk off and I reached down to help Twilight back up as Auron gave a slight chuckle before following us out. As we moved up through the Underworld Twilight's strength started to come back, so as we we're jogging into the Cave of the Dead Donald looked up at the door surprise. Neither Twilight nor I were surprised.

"What? It's closed!" Donald cried, surprised.

The two of us stop behind the boys as Sora, Donald, and goofy try to push the doors open. I roll my eyes as they try pushing it. Twilight and I stood off to the side with Auron just watching them, almost laughing but not as they grunted and groaned. Suddenly Donald pulled back and looked up at the door, pointing at a Keyhole. Sora backed up to look at it for a moment before his Keyblade appeared. Now interested, Auron walked over to the younger boy.

"Will that open it?" Auron asked.

I grabbed Twilight's wrist and dragged her closer to the door as Sora held the blade tightly. We needed a quick getaway. Or at least Twilight did. I could stay back and fight, since I was one of the stronger ones here because of the hero handicap that the Underworld left on Sora. I knew that Sora and Auron could fight on their own but if they got hurt and I knew there was something I could have done to stop it the guilt would eat me alive.

"Yeah. I think so." Sora replied, nodding.

Just as Sora started to point at the Keyhole there was a roar from behind us, causing all of us to turn. We looked at the entrance to the cave. Auron pulled his sword out, preparing for battle. I stiffened when I heart footfalls looming closer and closer through the darkness. Cerberus was coming after us and he was gaining.

"Hurry!" Auron ordered.

I look over at Sora as Cerberus jumps into the cave's entranceway. He pointed his Keyblade at the lock and a beam of light shot out of it. Goofy and Donald start pushing the door open and as soon as it was wide enough I pushed Twilight through before turning back to look at the others. The large three-headed dog charged and Auron blocked it, his sword caught in one of the heads teeth. He jerked his blade free and the large dog jumped back, Sora started to run towards me and the rest of the group before stopping and turning around to look at the fight.

"Uh…"

Donald looked at Sora and I, knowing what we were thinking. Sora glanced over at me and I started walking back to the fight. Sora broke out into a run and joined the fray with almost childlike fascination. We were leaving Donald to jump up and down as he fussed over us. Goofy just locked eyes with me and then turned to watch over Twilight without a word.

"Sora! Ghost wait!" Donald cried.

I summoned my weapon and stood on Auron's left as Sora took his right and a barrier popped up behind us. Cerberus roars again before charging at us and creating a shock wave that we jump over to avoid damage. I focused on a single head distracting it from the guys as they fight the other two. The dog annoyed with our almost constant attacks leaned back and slammed its front paws down creating another shock wave that we jump over.

I ducked as one of the heads snapped at me, striking upwards and connecting with the tender flesh under its jaw. I jumped back as Sora and Auron used their limit to attack the three- headed dog. As soon as they were done I jumped back into the fight, getting a slight thwack from one of the heads that forced me to back up for a moment before going back in. I grimaced as the dog started hopping around creating shock waves.

My eyes widened and I gasped as all three heads went after Sora at once. He used two of the heads as a spring board and put his Keyblade in the jaws of the middle head, keeping it open and jumping up. As he was over the heads he sent an attack straight down hitting the middle head extremely hard, all three of the heads forced low by the attack. As the dog was knocked out each of us began to attack a head, never letting up. It regained consciousness and stumbled back slightly. It gave a roar.

"Come on!" Donald cried.

I wasn't one to say no to that advice now. All three of us ran through the doors quickly as Donald and Goofy shut them. I rolled my eyes as the three boys made funny faces and mocked the dog on the other side of the door. The door closed with a thud and I looked over at Twilight for a moment before looking back at the boys. I jerked around to her as she grabbed my arm.

"Have you been listening to a word I've said?" Twilight demanded.

"No." I responded.

She deadpanned, her scoldings having had no effect, as I turned smiling slightly as I noticed Auron wander off without anyone else noticing. He caught my eye and I nodded. He did the same and left without a word otherwise. We walked away from the door and went to the larger entrance closer to the stairs. Sora stretched his arms over his head.

"Whew…" Sora sighed.

"Huh?"

"What happened to Auron?" Goofy asked

Donald and Goofy looked around for a moment. Sora placed his hands behind his head in his trademarked style, grinning like he normally did. He didn't look worried in the least. Not like he really needed to be worried. Auron could handle himself just fine. The man was stronger, faster, and more experienced than any of them combined. Heartless, Nobodies, lackeys of either force were nothing compared to him. He could eliminate them with perfect ease.

"He can take care of himself. Let's go find Meg. Then we can try this again." Sora said.

Donald and Goofy nodded in agreement. Without another word otherwise we start to head up the stairs to the Coliseum. Twilight grew stronger and stronger with each step. She smiled at me, growing more and more confident with each step. The closer we got to the Coliseum I could see the bright light shining down the steps. Goofy looked back at me.

"Why do you think you weren't affected by the Underworld like we were Ghost?" Goofy asked.

"I don't know. Maybe it has something to do with my connection to the darkness. That's probably why it affected Twilight as strongly as it did." I answered.

She looked up at me with a confused expression on her face. She didn't understand as I could plainly see. No one really did. I knew the darkness made me different from them. I wasn't going to try to hide it from them. They could deny it all they wanted but I was someone tied to the darkness and they were tied to the light. But we had chosen our sides together.

"Huh?"

Her eyebrows furrowed together as the exhaustion finally cleared away the further up we went. I stopped and waited until she drew level with me. She was panting ever so slightly as she reached my side but she was getting her strength back, a good sign but once we had to go back in she'd be just as weary as she was now.

"With your connection to the light going into basically a gigantic pit of darkness was probably not the best idea we had." I explained.

I blinked and winced as we entered into the bright light, pulling my sunglasses down to cover my eyes. Twilight grinned and spread her arms, closing her eyes and tipping her head up to the sun. I smirked and shook my head as I followed the guys. We stopped when the doors started to open revealing a tired looking Hercules who brightened up when he spotted the boys.

"Sora! Donald! Goofy! When'd you get here?" Hercules asked, surprised.

All three of them waved at the larger muscular man, saying hello. Sora saw Herc glance at the two of us. His eyes narrowed ever so slightly as he scrutinized us, as if determining whether or not we should or should not be trusted. But Sora being peace keeper and all waved his hands, as if proclaiming we were innocent.

"This is Ghost and Twilight. They're traveling with us now." Sora explained.

I smiled '_more like making sure you don't kill yourself accidently'_ and waved at the well muscled man keeping my thoughts on the inside. It was like a babysitting trip and I wasn't getting paid to watch the babies; even if it was incredibly fun here. Herc walked over to us. Twilight smiled at him, staying close to me, not because she was afraid of him but because she was still tired.

"You on another adventure?" Hercules asked.

I looked behind him as Meg appeared in the doorway. She was watching with hope burning in her eyes. I hated to burst her bubble but Hades wasn't going to let up. We couldn't even get near the human inferno let alone talk to him long enough to order him to back off, not like it would have done any good. Hades would have sent even more monsters if he knew Hercules were having problems, just to eliminate the man.

"Yeah, trackin' down some friends, wipin' out some Heartless." Sora explained.

Herc grinned at Sora's response. He and Sora clasped hands in a manly version of a handshake, or so the two seemed to believe. I rolled my eyes as Twilight smiled at me, knowing my reaction to the scene before me before it happened. She covered her giggle with her hand as Sora and Hercules had a touching 'man' moment.

"Junior heroes, always busy!" Hercules laughed.

"You know it!" Sora grinned in response.

They let go of one another's hand and headed into the Foyer. As I yawned Twilight smirked at me, knowing that I was practically bored to tears. I sat on the pedestal, trying to make myself comfortable. Twilight leaned against the side, looking up at me. She sighed, knowing we'd have to wait a while before we did anything else.

"So, did you find those friends of yours?" Herc asked.

Sora scratched his cheek while, almost embarrassed to admit that he hadn't really found Riku or Kairi. It wasn't necessarily his fault that he had run into some difficulties. How on earth was he to know that Ansem, who wasn't really Ansem, was going to go all nuts, try to open the door to Kingdom Hearts and then cause his friend to be locked on one side of the door while Kairi was sent back home?

"Still working on it. When we got here, we ran into Meg…meg…mega trouble, I mean!" Sora explained quickly.

I rolled my eyes and tucked away a smile, '_Nice save there, Sora.'_ I was merely amazed that Hercules didn't catch Sora's slip of the tongue. The older man didn't even think anything of it. I almost threw my hands up in exasperation. Men could be so thick, so slow, sometimes it almost wasn't even funny at all. Hercules merely crossed his arms as he listened

"So we had to help somebody out. We tried to go teach Hades a thing or two…but the Underworld drains away all our strength. Don't suppose you have any ideas?" Sora asked.

Herc placed a hand on his chin thinking. I could tell he wanted to help Sora. It was like a sort of obligation to help the younger man; very few could resist Sora when he asked for something.

"Well, there is a stone that guards against the Underworld's curse. The gods on Mount Olympus use it whenever they have to go down there." Hercules explained.

Sora tilted his head, wondering about the possibilities of using the stone. It would help when fighting down in the Underworld but then again Twilight and I knew we weren't really going to get anywhere near Hades. Instead we exchanged glances, knowing it was better to get the stone anyways. Although I didn't need it, the others did.

"Think we could use it?" Sora asked.

Herc uncrossed his arms and nodded with a smile. The fallen god was glad to help. It was still surprising to see that Hercules would still want to help even though Sora had given him shady information about what exactly they were going to do. A normal person would want more information, even if they did trust the person with their life.

"Sure, why not! I'll go get it for you." Herc replied.

"Thanks!" Donald squawked in appreciation.

"Real nice of you!" Goofy agreed with a nod.

"But Hades is no pushover, even if you've got the Olympus Stone. And I have a match today, so I can't go with you…Know what you need? Training! Why don't you go talk to Phil?" Hercules warned.

I groaned slightly when he said 'training' and slumped slightly, Twilight placing a hand on my shoulder and patted it with a small smile. I shook my head at her with a small smile of my own and straightened up before following the guys outside. I looked around for a moment before spotting Phil over by the floating pots. Sora walked over and waved at him even though he wasn't looking. Sora was about to say something but Phil didn't give him a chance.

"Hey champ, how ya feeling?" Phil asked, not even looking at us. Better rest up for tomorrow's match. Nobody's gonna pay to see a worn-out hero…capiche? Remember what I told you."

I moved over to stand next to Goofy looking over his shoulder at the small satyr. I grinned as I looked down at the small goat-man. The man hadn't even noticed that none of us were Hercules, or anywhere near Hercules in the slightest. Alas, that's what you get when you don't pay attention to the small details around you.

"Victory in the games comes down to two simple words: Eat, bathe, sleep!" Phil continued.

The five of us start laughing at the satyr's bad math. He turned around to yell at us but broke out into a grin as he saw who it was that was laughing at him. He jogged over and Sora bent down holding his hands out palms up allowing Phil to hit them lightly before the satyr gave the boy a hug. Sora just laughed, allowing the smaller goat-like man to hug him.

"Hey, if it ain't the junior heroes!" Phil cried.

Sora stood up slightly resting his hands on his knees, grinning like always. I almost couldn't imagine Sora without a smile. He always looked so happy. He always acted so happy. I was almost hurt knowing that things were going to get harder for him because of the Organization, Kairi and Riku. He was going to go through a lot of drama.

"Lookin' good, Phil." Sora said.

Phil propped his hands on his hips as he looked up at the boy, seeing that Sora had really changed since he had last seen the older, yet much smaller, man. So much had happened in the time span of their last meeting as well. Phil placed a kind, teasing smile on his lips as he looked up at the Keyblade wielder, as if he had just seen the boy yesterday. I couldn't help but smile as well.

"Never better! How you guys been? Have you earned your 'true hero' wings yet?" Phil asked.

The boys straighten up for a moment before slumping slightly and thinking about it. Honestly, he didn't really know if he had earned those much desired wings yet. Phil crossed his arms and turned away. I found it slightly unfair to Sora. I believed he found his hero wings. He had fought so hard for Kairi, Riku, and all the worlds.

"Nope, you ain't got what it takes." Phil decided.

I laugh as the boys seemed shocked by this. My laughter however brought Phil's attention to Twilight and I. His smile faded immediately and he narrowed his eyes as he scrutinized us with beady black eyes. It was almost painfully obvious that he didn't trust us. I didn't really blame him. No one really trusted anyone anymore.

"Hey who're the girls?" Phil asked.

"That's Twilight and Ghost; they're traveling with us now." Sora said.

"Probably saving them all the time." Phil mumbled.

My eyebrows snapped together and my eyes narrowed. My fists curled into fists. I longed to prove that I wasn't some weak damsel in distress who constantly needed someone saving her. Out of the corner of my eyes I saw Twilight's eyes widened and her jaw dropped as she stared at him, shocked that he'd even suggest something like that.

"You wanna repeat that, goat boy?" I growled.

Phil jerked his hands up into fist and I stared down at him, Sora and Twilight looked between the two of us and could practically see the sparks flying in between us. Twilight grabbed my arm and started to pull me away from the satyr making me break eye contact with the short man. It was probably for the better. No one needed me busting up the satyr.

"So, what's up?" Phil asked.

Twilight and I sat in the stands as Sora explained the situation. Phil laughed in disbelief, after Sora finished. We could hear his laughter dancing all around the stands. Sora glared at the satyr as the smaller man laughed at Sora's expense. I just smirked, knowing that Sora could prove him wrong. If only Phil could see Sora fight his battle against Xehanort's Heartless.

"Ha ha ha! You five are gonna take on Hades?" Phil asked, not believing Sora for a moment.

"What's so funny?!" Donald demanded.

Donald glared at Phil. Phil merely crossed his arms shaking his head, still trying to get over the fact that Sora wanted to fight Hades. I sighed. Compared to the Organization Hades was a total fruit cake. We would really be fighting for our lives against the Nobodies. They were strong, inhumanly so, and fast, depending on who it was we were fighting and some were ruthless, cold-hearted creatures of the dark. Granted I was using the term cold-hearted loosely. Demyx, Roxas, Axel, and even Xigbar, to some extent, were exceptions to the rule.

"You got nerve. I like that. I even like that girl's spunk," Phil said, "Hey, you never know…stranger things have happened, right? Better get cracking, boys! So you want to train, eh? All right, I'm gonna work you hard!"

I stretched and looked over at the boys, Donald and Goofy standing with Phil and Sora preparing to smash the pots. I moved over to him as he took a deep breath, preparing to attack the pots with all his worth. I leaned down, hovering over him as he took a battle stance, not that pots were very threatening but you never know. Things aren't always as they appear.

"Smash the pots into other pots that way you destroy more at once." I whispered in his ear.

He looked up at me, grinned and nodded. I backed up and watched him train with a frown, Phil stood next to me watching the boy. Sora gave a cheerful, wordless whoop when he destroyed the last pot. He walked over to us with a cocky grin, placing his hands behind his head. Excitement was dancing in his eyes as he looked at us.

"How was_ that_?" Sora asked.

"Don't get cocky." I replied.

He glanced over at me and nodded in agreement as Phil snorted at Sora's overconfidence. He'd end up getting himself seriously hurt if he didn't watch himself. Not like Donald, Goofy or I would let that happen. Despite what he told Auron, he really did need a guardian. He was a danger magnet on top of being accident prone.

"It ain't over yet, kid! There's more on the menu. You can relax once you've finished all the training." Phil ordered.

"No problem!" Sora said with a nod.

I deadpanned as I watched him get ready for battle once more. There was a cocky smile on his lips as he glared at the offending pot before him. '_In one ear and out the other,'_ I thought as I shook my head. However, no amount of disapproval could chase the smile off my lips as I watched the goofball in front of me.

"Now get ready for the real thing. If a big one appears, don't let it get away." Phil ordered.

Sora nodded and went back into the arena to smash more pots. Phil looked up at me. There was a look of praise was on his face. I just smiled at him. We were both practically oblivious to the shattering of the glass pots in front of us and neither of us moved when small shards bounced their way towards our feet.

"You gave the kid good advice, you sure you don't want to be training heroes?" Phil asked.

I blinked and smiled giving a slight chuckle at the idea. Me? Hero? Now that was a real laugh. I was part of darkness, no matter how hard I fought against it. Darkness is only seen as evil in the eyes of everyone around it. If playing the part of a villain while acting as a hero was the role I was to play then I'd play it to the best of my abilities.

"Nah, I've got a full time job keeping an eye on him and Twilight. I keep it in mind if I ever become unemployed though." I replied.

The satyr laughed and punched my thigh lightly since he really couldn't reach any higher than that. I couldn't help the fact that I practically towered over him. I gave a soft chuckle as well.

"I like you," Phil told me, "You got a lot of spunk."

I grinned, sometimes spunk was all one had to keep going, and looked back at Sora who was walking towards us. Phil glanced behind him as he heard the doors open and spotted Hercules walking out. Something seemed to have the muscular man down. When I saw this I exchanged glances with Twilight. She shivered in anticipation with a small smile on her lips. Phil looked up at Sora.

"Listen, I gotta take off for a bit." Phil said.

Sora tilted his head, lowering his weapon as he stared at the satyr confused, as I looked down at the shorter man. The pots stopped their onslaught of an attack on Sora as the satyr sighed. Sora's Keyblade disappeared as he took a few steps towards the tiny man. Phil just snorted at the young boy before him.

"Where to?" Sora asked.

"None of your beeswax." Phil said tersely.

The two of us watched as Phil left, in a hurry. He was moving almost as fast as his short little legs would carry him. Sora turned over to me, looking at me and hoping that I had an answer as I glanced over at him, shrugging. We both turned as Hercules come over to us looking disappointed. The dejection was evident by the look on his face and the slump of his shoulders.

"Sorry, guys…The Olympus Stone has been stolen." Herc said.

"What?" Sora and Donald cried.

I looked over at Twilight as she joined us. She and I exchanged looks before turning back to our shocked male companions. Hercules just looked depressed since he had failed Sora and the rest of us. Not like it was his fault that the stone was stolen in the first place. There wasn't really anything that he could do to prevent it.

"By who?" Goofy asked.

The hero shook his head slumping along with his dejectedly slumped shoulders. I sighed, wanting to knock some sense into him for being so depressed and his utter loathing for himself because of something he had no control over. I really have never had any patience for melodramatics. I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest as he prepared to explain.

"We don't know who did it yet. All we're sure of is that it was a guy in a black-hooded cloak. And he had accomplices… a bunch of creatures in white." Hercules explained.

I watched as Donald looked over at Goofy who nodded once the duck had caught his eye. They both knew, as I knew, who exactly had decided to steal the stone. Hercules raised an eyebrow. There was fear in his eyes and I could tell he was hoping with all of his being that we weren't connected to the robbery at all.

"Someone you know?" Hercules asked.

"I think so." Sora said, "Hey, if we can get the Olympus Stone back, can we borrow it for a while?"

Herc nodded after a moment, seeing no harm in agreeing. He trusted us. He trusted Sora.

"Sure. By the way, you haven't seen Meg around, have you?" He asked.

We shook our heads but Twilight and I glanced at each other unnoticed by the others. We hadn't even noticed that she had gone missing in the first place. He sighed and slumped slightly, looking – if anything – more depressed than he had been. I grimaced and looked away, unable to bear the waves of depression that seemed to roll of him.

"Oh, okay…" He murmured.

My eyes widened as Hades appeared placing a hand on Herc's shoulder. Sora and the others tensed up as well, preparing to fight Hades. This time we had the advantage because we were on hero turf, therefore undaunted by the anti-hero curse of the Underworld. Still, we'd try to fight him again on his turf if given the opportunity.

"What's wrong, your hero-ness? Feeling under the weather?" Hades asked, tauntingly.

Herc jerked away from the flaming haired god as if his touch burned him. I glared at him, feeling my lips pull down into a frown. I hated how he was taunting us, as if he were better than we were. Sure, we had to retreat last time we fought him and, yes, he is a god but still. We were unprepared that time, that didn't give him the right to act as if he were that much better than we were.

"You know, I thought staying in perfect shape was part of the hero job description…you know what I'm saying?" Hades continued.

He had turned around while saying this but looked back as Sora stepped forward, looking as defiant and courageous as always. His fists hung down at his side, prepared at any moment to sock the dead lord. His eyes burned like fire as he looked up at the much taller lord of the dead. Hades merely looked down at Sora with scorn.

"Oh, right…Hades, we gotta talk!" Sora said.

The god raised a hand and flicked Sora in the forehead making the brunet fall to the ground with a soft grunt. Twilight was at his side instantly, helping him back to his feet, all the while glaring at Hades coldly. Hades merely sneered and then returned his attention to the angered Hercules in front of him.

"I came to share a bit of mildly-interesting news." Hades continued, as if Sora hadn't interrupted.

I rolled my eyes as Herc tried to sneak up on Hades as the god stood there, unmoving, pretending he didn't know that he was going to be attacked soon. I shook my head, knowing that the plan was doomed to fail. Hades may be overly confident but he was a strong, cunning and conniving god. Plus, Hercules wasn't that great at sneaking around.

"Seems you dear, sweet little Nutmeg…"

Hades vanished in swirl of smoke as Herc drew his arm back ready to punch Hades but the god vanished instantly. He reappeared behind the hero, a slight smirk across his lips as he thought about what he was going to say. He was enjoying this. I could tell by the look in his eyes that he loved every second of our anger.

"…went and got herself lost in the Underworld." He continued.

"You mean you kidnapped her!" Hercules accused.

The god shrugged spreading his arms. He smiled at us, one of those sick twisted smiles that held a hint of mirth in them as he looked at us. I scowled at him, wanting to hurt him so badly. My nails were leaving imprints on my palms as I clenched my fists tightly before forcing my hands to relax. He was low, lower than low, picking on someone as defenseless as Meg. She couldn't fight and yet he had taken her as bait.

"Well, maybe…But why get caught up in the details?" Hades asked.

Herc whistled and Pegasus appeared over the wall of the Coliseum. It flew over to Herc landing next to him. Hercules was about to get on when Hades shook his head, with a dark sadistic smirk on his lips. I grit my teeth wanting to explode from my anger. The man was just pressing my buttons, yet I couldn't help but think about how good it would feel to attack him later.

"Uh-uh-uh! You can't leave now, okay?" Hades asked making Hercules pause as he listened to the god had to say, "You've got a very important match today, against, um…the bloodthirsty Hydra! I mean, if you don't stick around, who knows what kind of 'accident' might happen."

"Yeah, accidents you cause." Sora accused.

"Like I said: details who needs 'em?" Hades countered.

Hades just waved the accusation off. People could get hurt because of him yet he didn't care. I scowled darkly. Twilight was just as mad as I was. She was shaking from anger and rage that was welling up inside of her. Hades just seemed to relish the growing anger and hatred from the group surrounding him.

"You're just a coward." Herc said angrily.

The god vanished in a swirl of smoke, leaving us all steaming mad and without anything to take our frustration out on. Regardless, Heartless and Nobodies were bound to be close by so they would pay the price of their anger instead of the god of the dead. It was the only thing the poor creatures were really useful for.

"Ah well. Can't all be heroes." Hades said brushing the words aside.

Herc crossed his arms and closed his eyes, head tilted towards the ground as Sora walked up to him. He glanced over at the boy, hope and a tinge of fear sparkled through the might hero's eyes. Even he knew that he couldn't be in two places at once and he feared the choice of being made to chose one or the other – his home or Meg.

"Can you handle this?" Hercules asked.

"You got it! We're heroes!" Donald said proudly.

The duck placed his hands on his hips and puffed out his chest in an attempt to look heroic. I chuckled as Goofy leaned down to correct the duck. Goofy was smiling as he leaned closer to the duck – to pop his friend's bubble. I smiled, despite myself and despite the situation we were in. I couldn't help it, they were funny.

"Junior heroes, Donald." Goofy corrected.

Donald shook his head and glared up at Goofy for even mentioning Phil's ranking of them. To them the rank was everything but a hero wasn't measured by strength. They shouldn't be ranked.

"You take care of the Hydra. We'll handle the rest." Sora assured the man.

Placing his hands on Sora's shoulders Hercules looked slightly relieved by Sora's assurance. He knew Sora was strong enough to follow through with the promise. The boy would fight to the very end for a friend in peril or in a pickle. It was one of his good traits that I admired, never quitting, no matter how dark the outcome may seem or how foolish it was.

"I'm counting on you." Hercules said.

Sora nodded as Pegasus trotted over. Turning to the half-horse, half-bird Hercules petted his neck. Pegasus' wings folded in, covering most of its back. The bird-horse whinnied, as his master pet him. Twilight watched the creature, amazed and awestruck. I could tell she really wanted to pet him but she was holding herself back.

"You gotta find Meg!"

I blinked as the horse nodded and took off over the Coliseum walls. Herc placed a hand on his head and sighed as we all watched it fly away with 'there it goes' expressions. I looked over at Twilight as we went through the Foyer. She looked a little nervous as we walked closer and closer to the entrance to the Underworld.

"You sure you wanna go back down there?" I asked.

She nodded quickly and kept walking. I watched her for a moment before sighing and shoving my hands into my coat pockets, keeping an eye on her. I walked past the others and started heading down the stairs to the Underworld. Reaching the bottom first, I glanced back up at the others for a moment before looking back to the center where I spotted Phil on the ground. My eyes widened and I ran over.

"Phil!" I cried.

Kneeling down next to the satyr I placed a hand in his shoulder, gently shaking him. I didn't want to shake him too hard, in case he was more hurt than I thought. He groaned at my touch, wincing slightly as he sat up. I could tell he was in pain and he was trying not to show it. He was trying to be tough, like Hercules, and just grin and bear it, like Sora.

"You okay?" I asked.

He nodded as he pushed himself up grunting as Sora and the rest ran over. Sora kneeled down next to me, as I removed my hand from Phil's shoulder, so he didn't look as weak in their eyes. Phil looked a little unsteady on his feet as he stood there but he stood his ground, refusing to break under the weakness that he was feeling.

"What happened?" Sora asked.

"I spotted this strange guy all dressed in black. I chased after him, but he turned on me. Next thing I know, I'm seeing stars." Phil said.

As Phil rubbed the back of his head for a moment, Donald's eyes narrowed, crossing his arms. I could almost feel his hatred for the Organization. It was like a bitter acid, placed under my tongue. It was going to be harder and harder for Twilight and I to convince Sora and the others that Demyx and Axel were good guys as time went on.

"All dressed in black?" Donald snapped.

Sora looked at the satyr as I stood up. I brushed some imaginary dirt of the leg of my pants. I sighed, knowing what was going to happen next. Twilight got back to her feet, looking nervous as she met my eyes. I just nodded, confirming it was who we thought it was. I crossed my arms, wondering what to do about everything.

"He's the one who stole the Olympus Stone." I said.

"Where did he run off to?" Goofy asked.

Phil pointed over to the entrance with a small stubby little finger. Sora scowled, knowing exactly where it was leading to. Once again we had to go through the Underworld to catch Demyx, to get the stone, to get to Meg and to save her from Hades. It was a big to do list and, of course, it had to be done in that order.

"To the Underworld. He's a bad apple, all right." Phil said.

I gripped Twilight's wrist, giving it a warning squeeze as she was about to say something. But the irony was still there, hanging in the air and threatening to make the two of us burst into laughter at the thought. Demyx was hardly bad. Evil wasn't the first thing that came to mind when the two of us thought about Demyx.

"And all I wanted was to find a back up hero." Phil said, "Just in case Herc needed to take a break."

I released Twilight's wrist as Sora gave a cocky smile. His eyes were alight with amusement and excitement as he looked at Phil, hoping for a chance to prove himself a hero in Phil's eyes once and for all. He struck a pose, trying to look heroic. I sighed, unable to stop myself. Twilight looked at me and grinned, knowing what I was thinking.

"Heroes, eh? You could've just asked!" Sora said.

Phil jumped on the idea, showing the excitement on his face. He had the best intentions in mind but he was going about it the wrong way. He should have taken any help he could have got. Sora was strong, good enough to fight some of the monsters that Hercules could. I just looked at Sora instead, seeing the proud and courageous look on his face.

"You know someone?" Phil asked.

I rolled my eyes and Twilight snorted as Donald and Sora pulled out their weapons and Phil slumped waving them off, shaking his hand in the air. The disappointment was evident in the slump of Phil's shoulders and the frown on his face. I smiled, attempting to reassure him but there was really nothing I could say.

"Oh, good one…" Phil commented.

The two of them were about to respond when I grabbed Sora's arm and started to drag him to the entrance. Twilight was giving the same treatment to a protesting Donald. Neither of them were happy with being treated like puppies on a leash. Goofy followed after us, sniggering at his two friends behind his hand.

"We have more important business to attend to." I said, reminding Sora, "Remember the whole rescue the damsel in distress, thing?"

"Oh…" Sora murmured.

He gave a sheepish smile and scratched the back of his head with a small laugh. I let him go as we entered the Underworld Caverns. Fighting through the few Heartless that decided to attack us we reached the Lost Road. I glanced over at Twilight who was slowly falling behind. I glanced over at Sora who was working a kink out of his shoulder.

"Man…This Underworld curse is really getting to me." Sora muttered.

"We've got to get that Olympus Stone back fast!" Goofy said.

I slowed down and walked next to Twilight as the boys started to run off. I slung one of her arms around my shoulder and let her lean her weight on me as we walked. Reaching the Atrium a few seconds behind the boys, we spotted the hooded man turning around. He froze, knowing that he was caught and edged back a little nervous.

"Ah! You!" Demyx cried.

I settled Twilight sitting against the wall, straightening up I crossed my arms and leaned against the wall next to her. '_I said I wouldn't hit you Demyx and I plan on keeping that promise.'_ I pulled off his hood to reveal dirty blonde hair cut into a mullet. He waved a finger at Sora for a moment. Sora just stared at him, not understanding.

"Wait a sec… Roxas?" Demyx asked.

"Excuse me?" Sora asked perplexed.

Sora leaned back, away from Demyx. There was obvious confusion on his face as he stared at the Nobody. Twilight and I exchanged glances. She itched to talk to the Nobody but we both knew she couldn't. I could almost see how much she wanted to talk to him but I shook my head. Sora would ask too many questions. Questions we weren't prepared to answer just yet.

"Roxas?" Demyx asked.

When the taller man didn't get a response he slumped sighing in defeat. I smiled at his attempts to bring Roxas forth. We both knew it was a useless battle. Roxas wouldn't say anything and Sora didn't even know anything about Roxas' existence. It made my heart ache for Roxas, to be forgotten like that.

"Oh, it's no use." Demyx sighed.

Sora leaned forward, his hands on his hips. There was still confusion in his eyes as he looked at Demyx. Donald and Goofy exchanged looks. Neither of them knew what Demyx was talking about either nor would they. No one really knew about Roxas so no one would even react to his name, besides the evident confusion.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Sora asked.

Demyx dug through his pockets for a moment, looking for something on his person. I gave an amused grin as he pulled out a note card, holding it a good arms length away. Holding it out before him he examined the small card before him. His eyes strained to read the fine print of the card through the dark gloom of the cave.

"Let's see, here… 'If the subject fails to respond, use aggression to liberate his true disposition.'" Demyx read out loud.

The blonde rolled his eyes and shoved the note back into his pocket, not caring if the card was crumpled or torn upon reentry with his pocket. He looked so crestfallen and terrified at the same time as he shook his head, knowing what would happen if he failed his mission. As I watched I shifted uncomfortably, knowing there was nothing I could do to stop them from hurting him.

"Right. Did they ever pick the wrong guy for this one…" He muttered.

Sora crossed his arms and stared at the taller man bemused. It wasn't everyday that we saw a 'villain' questioning his strength or at least one with such a low self esteem. _'No thanks to Xemnas,'_ I thought bitterly to myself, remembering that he would hurt Demyx if he failed the mission. I tried to make the bile in my chest dissolve by swallowing but that only made my mouth feel dry and my tongue heavy.

"You're bizarre…" Sora murmured.

Demyx pulled out the Olympus Stone. The boys spotted it and jumped slightly in surprise. Goofy pointed at him, aiming at the stolen stone in his hands. I smiled to myself knowing that if Demyx needed the stone down here he was a hero. He needed it to be strong, or at least strong enough to challenge Sora.

"He's gotta be the thief!" Goofy cried.

Demyx waved a hand, trying to wave suspicion off of himself. Though, it was really no use. He had been caught with the stolen item red handed. It was useless to try to

"Now that's just plain rude!" Demyx protested.

I was trying very hard not to laugh at this point because Twilight was saying every single one of his lines with him quietly in a very convincing impersonation. Demyx held up the stone and was surrounded by a flash of light, the boys pulling out their own weapons got into fighting stances, as Demy pulled out his Sitar and started to play. I gave a small laugh.

"Dance, water! Dance!" Demyx yelled.

His water 'forms' surrounded Sora and the others, circling like sharks, but they kept away from us. I looked over at Demyx and blinked as I saw worry in his face as he looked over at Twilight. I gave a reassuring smile and winked at him when he glanced over at me. He turned back to the fight as Sora destroyed the last of the water 'forms' was destroyed.

"Not bad Roxas." Demyx said.

He banished his weapon and held onto his left shoulder backing away while. Twilight and I watched, interested. Twilight wanted to run over to him, to make sure Sora didn't hurt him too much. That much I could tell just by watching her tense and breathe out through her nose. She wanted to yell at Sora for being so rough with our friend.

"Roxas, come back to us!" He said half-heartedly.

However, I was using the term heart loosely. He let go of his shoulder as he summoned a portal that surrounded him and vanished into the darkness, not before giving Twilight and I a weak smile and a small wave of the hands that the guys didn't catch. The boys relaxed when they saw that he was gone Sora placed the Keyblade on his shoulder.

"Guy's a broken record." Sora said.

"Hey, look!" Donald cried.

Donald spotted something on the ground and moved forward. I helped Twilight up as the duck picked up the Olympus Stone and brought it over to Sora. I smiled, knowing Demyx had left the stone behind for us to find. Sora paused for a moment until Goofy took Twilight away from me and I backed up, holding the stone up the four of them were surrounded by light. The Olympus Stone vanished and Sora looked at his hands for a moment as Twilight stretched with a renewed strength, he looked down at Donald.

"Let's go! Meg needs our help!" Sora said.

Running into the room we looked around. There was a boulder in the middle of the room, an outline of Meg on it. There was a pillar of dark energy streaming up from it. I placed a hand on Sora's shoulder for a moment, watching the stone and not paying attention to the look on his face as he watched me, just as intently as I watched the rock.

"Grab the chests first while I take a look at this." I said.

He nodded and ran off as I walked around the boulder, my hand trailing behind me lightly touching the rough stone. My eyes narrowed and I propped my hands on my hips. '_Damn the only way to get in there really is to unlock the Underdrome,' _I thought darkly. I glanced back at Sora and moved out of the way nodding

"Go for it." I said.

He nodded and pointed the Keyblade at the lock on the boulder, a beam of light shooting out of it, causing the boulder to vanish and the pillar of energy to change to a light green color. Donald looked at the hole, concern was written on his face as he watched the unchanging hole. Meg didn't come out. It looks like we were going to have to go in.

"Meg!" Donald cried.

"Almost there!" Sora stated

He ran forward and was engulfed in the pillar of light, Donald and Goofy following close behind. I shook my head and walked in with Twilight, closing my eyes at the flash of light and only opening them when the light dimmed slightly to see that we were now in the Well of Captivity. Meg turned and spotted us, smiling before the boys spotted Hades laughing at us.

"Now that's what I call a key. Gee, thanks for your help! Now have a nice day." Hades said.

The god vanished in a puff of smoke and Meg turned towards us and her eyes widened at something. Twilight and I stiffened, knowing what was behind us without even looking. We exchanged glances, tensing slightly as we prepared for a fight. Besides, Hercules would be here after a while and then the battle would flow so much easier.

"Sora, behind you!" Meg cried.

I glanced back to see Pete and a group of Heartless, I sighed in annoyance at the giant cat turned dog thing. Pete smiled at us, as if he knew something we didn't. I smirked. It was good that we ran into Demyx and he had left the stone. We had the advantage now. We could fight in the Underworld whenever we felt like it.

"What's wrong? Can't fight in the Underworld? Ohh, boo-hoo-hoo!" Pete mocked.

Sora straightened up for a moment before getting into a fighting stance. Determination and anticipation burned in his eyes as he glared at the Heartless, wishing death upon them. Had looks been able to kill then the dark creatures would burst into flames and suffer a very cruel and untimely end.

"Better think again!" Sora said.

Pete looked at the group of Heartless around him, smirked, and pointed at us. There was an evident order hanging in the air as the Heartless tensed, almost anticipating battle with us. I narrowed my eyes, breathing deeply before exhaling. For a moment everything became very still. No one dared move, not even by an inch.

"Charge!" Pete cried.

I summoned my blade and Twilight unsheathed her saber as the Hook Bats came at us. They didn't even reach us as Sora hit them away with his Keyblade. Sora watched as a new group of Hook Bats appeared out of thin air. Sora paled, looking at us worriedly. I just shook my head, trying to silently tell him not to back down so easily.

"There's too many!" Sora said.

"Let's go!" Donald agreed.

Sora turned slightly and cut Meg's chains, thus freeing her, before he turned his attention back to the Heartless in front of us with a look of hate in his eyes. Pete suddenly turned around and was knocked down by Hercules. Meg and Sora gave relieved smiles at the hero before us as he turned and grinned at us over his shoulder.

"Sorry I'm late." Hercules said.

He turned and whistled. Pete stood up only to have Pegasus use him as a spring board making him fall down again. Both Twilight and I started laughing. When the half-horse landed Twilight patted the horse's neck, approving of his take down of the lackey. I had to admit it. Pegasus had a better entrance than his master did.

"Nice!" Twilight said approvingly.

The horse gave what sounded like a laugh and nuzzled the girl before looking over at Herc who had picked Meg up and was placing her on Pegasus' back. She gripped the back of Pegasus' neck, holding on in case the creature decided to take flight. I agreed with her. I wouldn't want to fall off the back of a large creature like Pegasus either.

"Get Meg outta here. I'll meet you back at the Coliseum." Hercules ordered.

"What about you?" Sora asked.

Sora looked up at the taller man. He was concerned and tense as he watched the man. Hercules jerked a thumb back at the Heartless floating behind him. Pete still on the ground, unmoving but groaning, thus proving that the man was alive. I straightened up, keeping my weapon at my side but still ready to swing it if necessary.

"I'm gonna show these guys what happens when they mess with a true hero." Hercules said.

Herc patted Pegasus' rump and the horse took off with Meg on it. The five of us, leaving Herc behind, passed Pete who was just starting to get up, on our way to the pillar of light that would get us out of there. I was tempted to flip Pete the bird but decided against it at the last second. He'd probably just charge at me.

"Now, wait a sec!" Pete yelled.

I glanced back to see that Herc had jumped in the way before stepping into the pillar of light to transport us back to the Lock. We looked up to see Pegasus and Meg landing Sora running over to them as they touched down. Meg looked down at the boy, obviously hurt and concerned over the wellbeing of the hero we left behind.

"Sora…I won't leave him." Meg said softly.

Sora waved an arm, waving off her worry. He believed that Hercules could handle it, that the man was invincible. I shook my head. Even the strongest of people are weak at some point in their life. Take Sora for example. He was great with a sword but weak with people. He could never say no when asked for help.

"He'll be okay." Sora said reassuring her.

"Look, even Herc has his limits." Meg protested. "He can't keep winning forever."

"Then we'll go back him up." Sora said.

Sora pounded a fist on his chest while he had been saying that. I couldn't help but roll my eyes as I smiled at him. Donald moved to the front. Pegasus looked down at the duck, unmoving and very still as he stared at the smaller creature in front of him. Twilight looked at me and gave me a Cheshire Cat-like smile. I grinned back at her.

"Get Meg outta here!" Donald ordered.

The horse nodded and took off. Once they were out of sight we headed back into the Underdrome where Pete had gathered even more Heartless. The dog paused in ordering the next wave to attack an exhausted Herc, who looked around to see why he had stooped. Glancing behind him Herc gave a relieved smile when he saw Sora standing next to him.

The two nodded at each other and turned back to Pete. The Heartless and our group charged each other at the same time. Looking around I saw Sora and Twilight take out most of the bats and Goofy and Donald focusing on one of the Trick Ghosts that were attacking, Herc and I dispatching the other fairly quickly.

"Ghost, heads up!" Twilight shouted.

I leapt back as a boulder crashed down where I had been standing a few seconds before hand. I looked over at Twilight, stabbed my sword through a Heartless and into the ground, reached behind me and grabbed the hilt of my Bowie. Drawing my hand back quickly I threw it pinning a Heartless to a wall that had been about to attack her from behind; thanking every god and goddess out there, from the Triforce to Minerva, that I was blade oriented and could aim. I grabbed my sword and ran over to her, yanking my Bowie out of the wall.

"Thanks but that makes us even." I replied.

She nodded turning her attention to Pete who no longer had Heartless to protect him. I rolled my eyes as Herc and Sora focused on attacking Pete, leaving the Hook Bats that kept flying in to the rest of us. I glanced back and swung my sword into the offending Heartless before moving out of the way of another boulder.

It didn't take long for Herc and Sora to end the fight with Pete the incompetent. I didn't even know why Maleficent wanted a lackey like him. He probably couldn't even tie his own shoes by himself let alone follow her orders but I guess when you're a villain and you're hurting for help, beggars couldn't be choosers. I sighed and placed my left hand on my hip, my sword held loose in my right hand, as Pete rubbed his nose.

"This place gives me the creeps." He said. He pointed at us as he continued, "I'll deal with you nitwits next time!"

With that the fat guy ran off '_yes because you're the one running off and we're the nitwits_,' I thought sarcastically before turning to the boys, who looked up at the crumbling arena. Sora waved his hand as I ran past him. For a moment he just stared so I stopped, turning to face him. I desperately motioned for him to follow as I started moving once again.

"C'mon, we gotta leave!" I said.

We all ran into the pillar of light that headed out of there. Not even stopping to defeat the Heartless that got in my way. I dodged around them the others trying to keep up. Twilight looked over at me as made a sharp turn, following my lead she turned missing a boulder by a few inches. Sora moved past her to run next to me, keeping with my pace easily. I looked over at him.

"What's the hurry?" He asked.

"I've got a bad feeling. I think something happened up in the Coliseum." I replied.

"You're doing this on a feeling?!" Donald squawked from behind me.

"My gut isn't normally wrong about things like this." I answered.

I ran ahead until I reached the entrance pausing to catch my breath as the others ran up behind me. '_Damn stairs, that's a lot of stairs to run up,'_ I thought. I took a deep breath glancing around me as the others caught their breath. Twilight glanced up at me and nodded. I gave a slight nod before turning and starting up the stairs to the Coliseum, trusting her to get them up the stairs in a timely fashion after they dealt with Hades.

I pulled my sunglasses down as I made my up until I finally made it out of the Underworld completely, jerking to a stop, breathing heavily as those stairs could take a lot out of a person, as I saw the damage done by the Hydra and then the Hydra itself. '_It's…purple. I hate purple.' _I gave a slight smirk. '_Well at least it'll be more fun defeating it this way.'_ My smirk vanished as I heard Herc run up beside me.

"This can't be…" Herc muttered in disbelief.

I ducked as a stone flew past me and almost landed on Sora as he came off of the stairs. The boy looked at me alarmed and I shot him an apologetic look. The thing roared and I looked back as Meg and Phil ran over to Herc. Meg crouched down next to the hero as Phil shook his arm, Pegasus landing nearby.

"Champ! You're safe!" Phil cried.

"I failed…" Herc muttered.

Herc looked down at Phil for a moment his eyes glazed over depressed. Meg tried to console him as he looked around the ruined Coliseum. It looked bad, really bad. The place was totally trashed. I couldn't lie about that. But there really wasn't anything he could do or could have done to prevent something like this from happening.

"It's not your fault!" Meg protested.

"I left everyone unprotected." Herc said,

"Hades was right. I'm just a…a washout." Herc muttered.

My eyebrows snapped together with an almost audible click as Herc slammed his fists onto the ground. '_Dammit, someone smack some sense into that boy!'_ Twilight silently placed a hand on my shoulder and I turned to her ignoring the group surrounding a depressed Herc. She smirked at the annoyed expression on my face.

"I guess this part always ticked you off." She said.

"You have no idea." I growled.

I glanced over at the Hydra which was coming through the ruins of the Foyer. I walked over to the boys summoning my sword, with a scowl on my face. Rubble and ruin was spread around us as we stood in the middle of the dust and debris, prepared to fight the mighty beast in front of us. I smirked slightly, anticipating the challenge that this thing presented.

"Herc needs help!" Donald said.

'_Yeah, he needs a therapist.'_ I thought, though I kept it to myself.

"Yeah!" Sora agreed.

"Don't suppose you got room for one more?" Phil asked as he dashed over.

I rolled my eyes at the satyr, as he made a series of fighting moves. I glanced over as Meg and Pegasus ran over. Both of them took a fighting pose as well. I doubted that Meg's tiny little fists would do anything against the monster in front of us, besides just make it mad, or at least madder that it already was.

"We're in!" Meg said determined.

I jerked my head over to an alcove in the rubble. She stared at me, not understanding what my silent gesture meant. I nearly rolled my eyes again but now wasn't the time to get all snippy with her. There was time for that later. Right now we had a monster on our hands that really needed an attitude adjustment.

"Meg, get over there, you're on backup." I explained.

I explained with a slight glare, she nodded and ran over to the alcove I had indicated. I looked up at the Hydra as it began its attack. I jumped as the purple beast swept its tail at us. Twilight jumped but not high enough tripping on the tail. I landed and moved over to her gripping her elbow and helping her up. My scowl deepened as light things started to follow Sora and I. I moved away from Twilight so she wouldn't get hit in the cross fire. As I kept moving the beams of energy followed me, I dropped to the ground as the Hydra's head skimmed over me.

I rolled away from one of the light things, seeing Twilight attack the head. Getting up I joined everyone attacking the head until it was knocked unconscious. I took in a deep breath as Sora cut off the first head, crouching low and getting ready for the next attack. As soon as the now decapitated body hit the ground, I jerked around to see two heads popping out, wincing slightly as rock pelted me.

Twilight and I started after the nearest head as Sora, Donald, and Goofy went after the other. Twilight and I finished first and moved over to the third head as Sora and the guys finished up their own. Sora cut off the head of the one we had just beaten, another head popping out of the ground in response. I looked over at Phil as he started yelling for us to get on the things back so we could use the pots to attack it.

I hit one of its heads again as Sora attacked it from on top of its back. I blinked surprised as all the heads suddenly slumped onto the ground. The group renewed its efforts to attack the heads that were on the ground Sora cutting them off as we went. I stepped back as the body started to stand up multiple heads growing from the stumps of its necks. I gave a frustrated growl as it started pounding its heads into the ground to attack us.

I dodged one of the heads but winced as I was grazed by another one slamming down behind me. I jumped away clutching my right shoulder for a moment. '_Shit!'_ My eyes widened as the Hydra stopped beating its heads on the ground and the black orbs started to sprout out of the ground. One was coming towards me, gritting my teeth I waved my left hand out in front of me, the dark orb switching direction momentarily and bouncing into a nearby wall.

I ran forward releasing my shoulder and started to attack one of the nearby heads that was close to the ground. It soon jerked itself up and returned to slamming the ground with its head for a moment. I looked up as it stopped doing that and the beams of energy returned but at a faster pace this time. I hissed as I ran trying to avoid them grunting as one connected searing my left arm. I rolled away as another one came after me.

Looking up as I stood I saw that Sora was on Pegasus flying around and attacking the various heads. I dug into my pocket as the Hydra was distracted and brought out a potion. Using my thumb to pop the cap quickly and slugging it down with a grimace. The slight ease of pain in my right shoulder and the return of full mobility in my left arm was enough to endure the bitter taste. I watched as Sora hopped down and the Hydra began to collect a large dark orb in front of its chest making those smaller dark orbs pop out of the ground again.

The Hydra began to beat its head down onto the ground making shock waves in rapid succession. I jumped over one of the shock waves, landed and immediately had to jump again as another shock wave came towards me with a dark orb also heading towards me. I waved my left hand in mid-air changing its direction before landing. I landed low, a hand placed on the ground and swung out at the descending head knocking it unconscious.

"Sora! _Now_!" Twilight screamed from the other side of the courtyard.

The boy complied by vanquishing the thing for the final time. The decapitated monster fell down with a thump a single head hitting the ground a second later with a thud. I banished my sword and sat on the ground with a gasp. I winced as I placed a hand on my right shoulder, the potion's effect wearing off, the pain and stiffness returning with a vengeance.

I took a deep breath, trying to bury the pain for the moment and stood up with a grimace. Walking over to the celebrating group I noticed that Donald and Twilight were curing people. I waved Twilight off for the moment turning my attention over to the depressed hero. I brushed Twilight off as I walked over to him standing next to Sora, Twilight glancing over at me worriedly. My eye twitched in annoyance.

"I let you down. I'm just…no use." Hercules muttered.

"It's not your fault. Hey, even a god would be exhausted." Meg said.

"She's right. Give yourself a chance to rest." Sora agreed.

"There won't be any games for a while anyway." Goofy said.

Meg placed her hand on his making him look up at her. He jerked back slightly as she stood up, brushed off her toga. She offered us a small, almost pained smile as she pretended to be okay, even though she was worried sick about Hercules. She didn't really fool any of us; we just nodded, pretending that she did.

"Don't worry about Wonderboy here. I'll look after him. Sora, Donald, Goofy, Twilight, Ghost, I owe you big time." Meg said sincerely.

"Hey, it's no big deal. Just let us know if Hades or the Heartless start acting up. We'll take care of it." Sora told her.

"Yeah, that's what heroes are for!" Donald said.

Donald nodded, straightened up, and placed his hands on his hips proudly. I shook my head at his newest attempt to look heroic. I had to admit that he was adamant about the whole thing. He didn't really need someone to tell him he was a hero but still the whole thing meant so much to him. The woman placed a hand on her chin quizzically.

"When did you three make hero?" Meg asked amused.

A smile flashed over my face for a moment before it disappeared again in a grimace when I caught the look on Sora's face. He had to have been remembering that Riku was locked on the other side of the door. I hung my head, scolding myself for forgetting such an important thing in Sora's journey. He just smiled it off, like he always did.

"Let's save that for another time…we have to hit the road." Sora said.

"Okay. Don't be strangers." Meg said.

Meg crossed her arms, smiled, and leaned forward slightly. She seemed to understand that it wasn't a topic to pry about so she let it go at that, leaving Sora his secrecy about the whole thing. Goofy walked over to Herc, stopping in front of him. The dog smiled sincerely as he looked down at the battle worn hero.

"Gawrsh, I hope you feel better soon, Hercules." Goofy said.

"Yeah…" Hercules agreed sadly.

"Phil?" Donald asked.

"Oh, well, take care you guys! Stay a little longer next time. We got some serious training to catch up on." Phil said.

Sora nodded before looking at all of us. We all nodded, confirming that it was time to go. We had other worlds to get to, other planets to search for King Mickey and Riku. I smiled to myself, thinking of all the travels we were going to have. I could taste the excitement coming off of Twilight as she grinned at me.

"Well, time to go." Sora announced.

He paused for a moment before digging into his pocket. He frowned as he dug furiously for something in his deep pocket. Then he pulled out the Olympus Stone. It glimmered in the bright sunlight. I smiled at it. Sora turned to Herc, smiling as he offered out the stone to the hero. The man just looked so tired, so broken as he sat there.

"Oh, I almost forgot. The Olympus Stone." Sora said.

Herc stood up and stumbled forward as Sora held it out to him. Just before the hero was going to touch it the stone began to glow making Sora grin back at Goofy. We all nodded and said our final good-byes before boarding the gummi ship. I sat down in my usual place with a sigh and closed my eyes for a moment. I opened them after I felt the ship take off and stared at the ceiling instead.

"Where are we headed and how long will it take?" I asked.

Donald turned in his seat excitedly, while looking back at the two of us. I guessed that he was glad to go home. Home what a funny word. I didn't even know if Twilight or I were going back home. I didn't even know if either of us wanted to. We were having a lot of fun here. But I guess I'd get homesick after a while.

"We're headed to Disney Castle!" Donald said excited.

"How long will it take?" I asked patiently.

I blinked and allowed my gaze to rest on the duck for a moment. Then I sighed, crossing my arms across my chest as I leaned further into the chair. He blinked and looked at the map, examining the course we had to take and all of the obstacles he knew we had to face. I patiently waited for his response, knowing I couldn't really change it if it was a while.

"19 hours." He replied tentatively.

"What?! 19 hours?!" Twilight yelled in horror.

I plugged my ears quickly wincing at the pain that still resonated in my ears and my shoulder. I rubbed my temples for a moment, trying to get rid of the ringing that Twilight's cry had caused in my ears. I smiled, know that Twilight was Twilight and I wouldn't change a single hair on her head. She was too much fun.

"Are we making any pit stops on the way there?" I asked.

Sora turned and looked at the duck curiously, wondering the same question I was. He was dead tired, as I could tell. He wouldn't really last long if we had to sleep in shifts and he wouldn't be prepared for anything if we did make it to Disney Castle without a break. Being a hero was tiring work. I smiled at the irony. If only Phil could travel with us to see that Sora was really a true hero.

"We're first going back to Beast's Castle, than a quick stop in Hollow Bastion." Donald said.

I nodded and settled down in my chair, ignoring the worried glances that Twilight was continuously throwing at me and drifted to sleep.

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**Hades is like my all time favorite villian, he's just so much fun to torment sometimes. Till next time then. :D**


	14. On to the Castle

**Yay! Thanks for being patient guys, school has been eating everyone's lives up. So Shout outs: Anexi, Selene Ruby Rose Snape, purplekitsune-chan, Rambonata, Insanity-Red, Springflowerangel, twilight-yuna17, Zaikia, heartlessneko, Nightshade07, and Vanessa Rowes. You all are awesomesauce!! So are all those who read and don't review, you guys are awesomesauce as well. :D **

**Disclaimer: Ghost and Twilight are mine. People really...think about it, if I owned the rights to KH2 would I be writting fanfiction? **

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**Chapter 14: On to the Castle**

I woke up a few hours before we landed at Beast's Castle and let Donald switch with me for the remainder of the trip, Goofy having already switched with Twilight than Sora. I grunted quietly as I sat in Donald's normal seat, stretching my legs out in front of me. There was silence in the gummi ship for a little while, which quickly faded as we landed Twilight waking up in her usual fashion of noisiness. I hoped out of the ship onto the ground wincing slightly and hissing in pain as I jolted my shoulder.

'_Damn, my stupid pride why the hell don't I just let them heal my shoulder, already?!'_ I thought angrily to myself.I looked at the group as they walked past me talking happily. I smiled and shook my head as I followed them in. I smiled happily as the transformed servants swept us into the castle and straight into the dining room where they were serving dinner.

I rubbed my hands in anticipation, forgetting my shoulder injury for the moment. Once we had gorged ourselves on the good food and conversation with the servants and Belle, who had joined us once she had heard that we had arrived, we were lead back to the rooms we had used before. I took off my bowie and sunglasses setting both on the table. I was about to shrug off my coat when Twilight walked into the room. I stared at her for a moment.

"What did I tell you about knocking?" I asked.

She shrugged and settled onto my bed, staring at me. I blinked and raised eyebrow at her. A tug from the darkness though distracted me from what she was saying as I felt two portals forming behind me. I turned around to see Demyx and Axel walking out of different portals. They, as distractions didn't last long, as Twilight grabbed my injured shoulder, making me grunt, and turned me around.

"Why haven't you let me heal you yet?" Twilight asked forcefully.

"You're hurt?" Axel asked.

"It's not that big of a deal." I muttered.

I rolled my eyes looking back at him over my shoulder. Twilight rolled her eyes as well as she looked at me with a disapproving look that I normally give her. I nearly laughed at the irony but I didn't want her reprimanding me for my 'childish behavior.' It would have been something I would have made sure to remind her of if she got hurt the way I had though.

"Just stop using the guy's mentality about pain for a moment and take the coat off."

I closed my eyes taking a breath and shrugged the coat off with a grimace. I heard a collective gasp as they saw my shoulder. While it wasn't bleeding anymore, it was almost completely black and there were parts that extended down my arm that were scabbed over or rubbed raw. A dark purplish black bruise circled the wound. It danced down my arm and towards my elbow

"Holy Shit!" Axel and Demyx swore in unison.

I turned around with a slightly shocked but amused smile. It hurt to move but I still gaped at him, nevertheless. It was rather surprising to hear it from him, especially since he didn't appear to be the type to cuss. He seemed far too innocent for such a thing. That really showed what I knew about everything.

"Demy you swore!" I gasped, as if horrified.

I twitched as I felt the cool sensation of Cure rippling over me. I glanced over at my shoulder as the feeling faded, it was still black and blue but the scabs were gone and there was new skin where the rubbed raw parts had been. I winced slightly as I rolled my shoulder, holding up a hand as Twilight prepared to cast Cure again. I held up a hand, preventing her from using up any more energy than she already had.

"It's okay, it'll heal in a couple of days and it's nowhere near the point that I won't be able to fight." I explained.

She reluctantly let the spell go and turned to Demyx who was watching her worriedly. She blinked owlishly and stared at him, not understanding the look in his eyes. For creatures without hearts Axel and Demyx seemed so emotional to me. It was almost like they were really Somebodies. I already knew they were in my eyes. Having a heart or not made no difference to me.

"What?" She asked.

He fiddled with his sleeves. He looked down, unable to meet her eyes. He looked shy, almost like a school boy talking to his crush for the first time. It was sweet in a strange way, particularly since he wasn't supposed to feel anything. It wasn't that I minded. I just wasn't sure how he could act like he liked her like that when he had no heart to give her.

"I saw you in the Underworld and I was hoping you were better now."

Twilight blinked rapidly for a moment, trying to figure out what he meant before remembering. He had been worried because of the Underworld's Anti-Hero policy. He worried because the Underworld made her weak, unable to defend herself from an attack. Then a large grin spread across her face, holding up a peace sign – the universal sign that everything was okay. He gave her a timid smile of his own as he saw that she was perfectly fine.

"A-okay!" she said enthusiastically.

Axel and I looked between them for a moment before I smirked. Axel looked at me as smug grin spread across his face. He folded his arms across his chest and gave a loud sigh, trying to break the two lovebirds apart but even that didn't call their attention. He seemed pretty content with just watching them. Finally I cleared my throat and they looked at me dazed.

"I would leave the two of you alone _but_… you're in my room." I teased.

The two of them turned bright red before Twilight grabbed Demyx's hand and started dragging the blushing blond out of the room. I cleared my throat making the two look at me before they got too far away and started causing more mischief. Belle and Beast hadn't been too pleased when they found all the armor tipped over from last time.

"No more crashing into suits of armor, if you're going to do something disastrous, try being sneaky about it. _Like_…" I trailed off, trying to come up with a good prank, "Changing all of the books in the library, like the library challenge. That'll drive Belle nuts."

Twilight grinned and continued dragging Demyx out of the room. The blond sitar player barely had time to react as Twilight threw the door open and dragged him out. He gave us a sheepish wave as he was tugged down the hallway. I smiled, shaking my head slightly. I sat down on the bed with a sigh and glanced up at Axel with a tired smile.

"What?" I asked wearily.

He just grinned and shook his head, quietly sitting down next to me. I yawned, covering my mouth with my hand. He wrapped his arm around my shoulders, being careful of my injured arm. I closed my eyes and rested my head on his shoulder, wincing slightly when I moved the wrong way and aggravated the tender joint of my arm. The pain passed and I sighed.

"Shit, I'm tired." I muttered.

I opened my eyes in time to see that Axel looked over at me and raised an eyebrow. His eyes were alight with amusement. I guess it was good that someone found this funny. I knew that I didn't. I rolled my eyes at the look he was giving me.

"Yes, I know I slept through most of the ride here, but being healed always tires me out for some reason." I explained wearily, "That's pretty much why I don't like it happening in the middle of battle."

"Ya know for a girl you're pretty tough." He said.

He smirked when he saw the annoyed expression on my face. I hit his shoulder lightly. He gripped his arm with his free hand, acting like I had hurt him deeply. If it weren't for the mocking smile and the mirth dancing in his eyes I might have even have fallen for the act. That and if he were hurt by the light tap that I gave him then he wasn't as strong as I thought he was.

"What the hell's that suppose ta mean?" I demanded.

He wrapped an arm around my shoulders gently, taking extra precaution with my right shoulder. I almost smiled at the gesture but I wasn't made of glass. Yet, as odd as it was it was still nice to know that I wasn't indestructible and that someone cared if I did get hurt. My heart felt light and fluttery in my chest as I thought about how much had changed since I came here. I had always been a bit of a loner back in my world with only a small group of friends, that I held close to my heart, but here I had more friends than I thought I would ever have – more than I could count on both hands: Leon, Yuffie, Aerith, Sora, Donald, Goofy, Axel, and Demyx and, of course, Twilight.

"Exactly what it sounds like." He responded.

I raised an eyebrow at the red head and he released me raising his hands defensively, a gesture of innocence as he looked down at me. I couldn't help but chuckle. Leaning against his shoulder I fell asleep. I felt him give me a slight hug, before laying me down onto the bed, pulling the blankets up over me and disappearing into a portal.

* * *

Twilight closed the door behind her with a small sigh. Now that she was no longer in front of Ghost she didn't have to pretend like everything was alright; though she had a feeling that Ghost could tell that something was off. She frowned as she looked up at Demyx, seeing the concerned look in his eyes. She attempted to smile once more but it looked as pathetic and as pained as she was so she stopped, seeing the grimace on his face when she tried. She didn't want to worry him too.

"She always makes me worry and there's so much that I can't do to help her." Twilight muttered.

Demyx tilted his head curiously, scratching his cheek as he tried to figure out how to cheer up the girl in front of him. She seemed so sad that it almost made his nonexistent heart ache with an equal amount of pain. He had to do something. He smiled slightly and grabbed onto Twilight's hand causing her to look up at him in confusion.

"C'mon I got a new song I want you to listen to." He told her.

Twilight grinned and nodded her head, allowing herself to be dragged along into her room so that he could play without being worried about being caught.

* * *

The next morning I woke up and got up, rolling my shoulder I winced. It wasn't as bad as the day before but it still wasn't up to 100%. Placing my Bowie back where it belonged I grabbed my sunglasses and slipped them on top of my head. I reached over grabbing my coat and slipped out the door. Glancing over at Twilight's room I slipped in for a moment, hearing an extra set of lungs in it, and spotted Demyx sleeping in a chair his head resting on the bed where Twilight was sleeping.

'_Okay as cute as this is, Demy has got to go.' _I thought almost sadly. I sighed and walked silently over to where Demyx was sleeping, placing a hand on his shoulder and giving it a light shake. He grumbled and sat up with a slight groan. I smiled and shook my head for a moment as he looked around confused, than up at me, than at Twilight, than back at me and turned the darkest shade of red that was humanly possible. I blinked and stifled a laugh before leaning down.

"You better go before you're missed by your superiors." I whispered.

He nodded quickly and summoned a portal but stopped and looked down. I glanced down to see a sleeping Twilight holding onto his sleeve, I looked back up at the Nobody who was giving her a gentle smile as he reached down and gently pried her fingers from his coat. I smiled at him for a moment as he slipped into the portal.

I waited until it was gone completely before slipping out the door and heading to the kitchen to get breakfast. I waved at Mrs. Potts and settled down at one of the counters in the bustling room. I chuckled as one of the cooks placed pancakes down in front of me and Mrs. Potts sat in front of me, pouring tea into a cup. I glanced up as the rest of the party walked into the kitchen and sat down next to me. Twilight glanced over at me.

"How's the shoulder?" She asked.

"Been better, been worse." I said with a shrug.

She nodded and started to dig into the food that had been set down in front of her. I propped my elbow on the table and leaned my head against my fist watching as the others finished their meal. Donald and Goofy seemed eager to be going. They hustled the group onto the gummi ship and started towards Hollow Bastion.

* * *

We landed in Hollow Bastion after about eight hours. We were all staring at Donald, who had driven like a crazy person cutting the normally nine hour trip by an hour. '_And I thought that the people where I'm from are crazy fast drivers, but I thought Donald was going to __kill __us!!' _I thought weakly as I struggled to get my non-air legs back. We jumped back as the duck rounded on us.

"Get supplies and be back here in an hour." Donald ordered.

We all nodded quickly and split up heading to different shops. I moved into a food shop to grab some supplies that we were getting low on and soon was walking out with a couple of bags clenched in my left hand. I walked over to the gummi ship and placed the food in the kitchen, checking the time quickly and hopping back out. I wandered around the town for a little bit quickly becoming bored with it. Glancing around, I saw a blonde walking past.

I blinked and followed the bright head of blonde smiling slightly '_Chocobo Head.' _I stopped, glancing up at the clock once again, and started to head in the other direction when I felt a hand on my shoulder, glancing up I found myself staring into brilliant blue eyes, eyes that held so much pain and yet showed nothing at the same time. The taller man looked down at me as I flashed him a smile, trying to convey that I meant no harm. Although it meant I had been caught in the act of, basically, stalking him.

"Why are you following me?"

I blinked. 'H_e's perceptive too, not that I expected anything less from Cloud Strife.' _I told myself. His eyes narrowed when I didn't answer right away his grip tightening on my shoulder making me wince. He noticed and his grip lessened but didn't release, I sighed and glanced at his hand before looking up at him and raising an eyebrow. He raised his own and I smirked. We could play a mirror game. It wasn't like Sora would leave without me.

"You're not going to let me go until I give you answer, are you?" I asked.

Cloud simply stared at me and I gave another sigh, sticking my hand out I introduced myself with a grin. He stared at my hand, as if it were poisonous or if he took it he would be electrocuted for some strange reason. I looked at my hand, wondering if I had something on it but then shook the thought aside, remembering that Cloud was socially stunted, at least in Advent Children which was now if one were to judge by his clothes.

"The name's Ghost." I told him.

He blinked, refusing to shake my hand. I lowered it, not pressuring him to take it. I didn't try to play it off like other people would have. I understood that Cloud wasn't a handshaking type of guy. It just wasn't his cup of tea to be a social butterfly. I wonder how he dealt with Yuffie. She was just so outgoing and happy-go-lucky. She was the polar opposite of Cloud. But then again that's probably why he hung out with Aerith too.

"Cloud." He responded.

My grin widened and I glanced up at the clock and grimaced. My time had run out. I gave him a sheepish smile as I gently reached up and tried to pry his hands off me. I needed to go. Sora might not want to leave me but I didn't need him and Twilight running all over town looking for me. They'd get themselves killed by Heartless or something like that.

"Well it was great talking to you and all Cloud but I gotta go." I said.

His eyes narrowed as I slipped out of his loosened grasp and started jogging back to the gummi ship. I glanced behind me for a moment to see Cloud watching me leave. He gave a slight shake of his head in amusement or annoyance I had no clue. I lost sight of him as I turned a corner and raced back to the gummi ship to see Donald waiting impatiently. I slowed to a stop in front of the irate duck, ignoring his badgering.

"Aren't we wasting more time doing this than if we had simply left already?" I asked.

"Sora isn't here yet." Donald replied.

I gave a slight laugh and boarded the gummi ship, before relaxing in my chair my hands behind my head. It didn't take long before I heard Donald yelling at someone from outside the ship. I heard a chuckle and I looked up, seeing Twilight leaning in the doorway, covering her mouth behind her hand. I didn't need to ask what happened. I already knew.

"Guess Sora's back." I commented.

She smiled, her eyes closed. I watched as the two boarded the ship and Donald moved to the driver's seat. I hissed grabbing my seat as he jerked the ship into full throttle. Twilight wasn't so lucky and fell with a thump onto the ground grabbing the arm of her seat so that she wouldn't slide back. We sent the driver dark looks as he looked at us in the mirror.

"Are you_ nuts_?" I barked.

"You're gonna _kill_ us!" Twilight cried.

* * *

It didn't take long for us to arrive at Disney Castle because of Donald's insane driving. I gasped in relief as we stepped out of the ship and turned to the duck. Twilight was moments away from kissing the ground in relief but she had some dignity left, even if it meant we didn't eat lunch in fear of getting sick. I didn't want to be remembered as the girl who barfed on a Heartless.

"And you think Sora's driving is bad, at least he keeps to a decent speed!" I yelled, "You just cut a five hour trip by three hours, even the people where I come from can't do that!"

I shook my head as the duck ignored me and looked around at the hanger. Sora looked around, finally seeing the home of his good friends with his own eyes. I could see the excitement and amusement in his eyes. New places meant new adventures and new things to explore. I smiled as I watched him, look around almost awestruck by the scenery. He truly was a kid at heart.

"This is your castle…must be nice to be home, huh? Well…" Sora commented.

I blinked and gave a quiet sigh '_Home. I wonder…'_ I shook my head, banishing all thoughts of home and returned my attention to Donald and Goofy. I couldn't let myself get drawn into the past now. It was too important to focus on the now. Twilight glanced over at me, having caught the flash of sadness on my face that was quickly replaced by a stoic expression. The two natives looked around Goofy placing a hand on his chin as he looked around.

"Ya know, somethin' just don't feel quite right…" Goofy said.

Donald crossed his arms and looked around suspiciously, trying to see if something was out of place. I didn't see anything wrong but then again I had never _been_ there before and the game didn't elaborate on what tipped it off that something was wrong. They would know best. They had lived here, probably for most if not all of their lives.

"Yeah." Donald said.

I glanced up as movement caught my eye and saw a couple of chipmunks running around in the hanger and heading towards us. I watched as they slide down the banister. Twilight grinned and I knew that she'd want to try it eventually. I just sighed as the guys started walking towards them. I bent over and rested my hands on my knees so I could get a good look at the small chipmunks. They were jumping up and down as we leaned close.

"You're back!" They cried in excited high pitched voices.

I smiled. They looked pretty glad to see us. Donald and Goofy weren't complaining either. Sora seemed equally as pleased. And Twilight, well, she looked like she wanted to pick them up and hug them tight. Either that or she'd grin so wide her face would crack. It wasn't hard to find the small chipmunks endearing.

"Move it! Let's go!" Dale - the one with the red nose – ordered.

"Queen Minnie needs to see you!" Chip – the one with the black nose – yelled.

All the while the chipmunks jumped up and down. There was worry and panic written on their faces as they jumped. Naturally one would be worried when their world was being attacked by Heartless. I wouldn't know.

"The castle's in danger!" Dale cried, "Hurry! To the library!"

Donald nodded as I stood up, knees cracking slightly as I stood. We walked up the darkened stairwell and Sora pushed open the doors to the courtyard. I pulled my sunglasses down as the sunlight flooded into the darkened space. I glanced over at Twilight, shooting competitive grins at each other, and we took off in opposite directions getting as many chests as we could find while fighting the Heartless that appeared.

I looked over to see how she was holding up, sighing when I saw she was being her normal 'attract Heartless like nothing else' self. I started moving over there when Sora started beating some of the Heartless away. She glanced over at me and I gave her a small smile before returning back to my own Heartless issue. Sweeping my sword into yet another Minute Bomb and kicking the head to where it would only harm Heartless.

Kicking the chest I grabbed whatever it had spat out at me, shoved it into my pocket, and ran towards the door that led to the infernal hallway of never ending Heartless. I sighed and leaned back, resting my head against the wall waiting for the others to catch up. I glanced over at the door to see the darkened outlining of someone. I straightened up as Sora and the rest walked in. I waited as Sora walked into the hallway, following behind him.

I swept my sword in an arc to the right scattering the Shadows that were forming there. My eyes narrowed in annoyance as the Heartless continued to swarm the group. I pushed Sora forward into the library as he was about to turn back to fight the Heartless that had popped up behind us. Twilight moved into the library behind me and I backed into the room, closing the doors with me. I turned around in time to see Donald saluting someone and blinked.

"Your Majesty! Queen Minnie! We're back!" Donald said.

"You're here!" She said, relieved.

She moved forward a few steps before folding her hands in front of her. I rolled my eyes '_No, we're illusions!' _I thought sarcastically. It was kind of obvious that we were here. Twilight was struggling not to snigger or giggle at the Queen's comment. She was attempting a poker face but with a strained smile. She tried looking away from the small mouse and at the books on the shelves instead. I kept my face blank as Goofy stepped forward and saluted.

"Your Royal Highness, did ya happen to summon us?" Goofy asked.

"Yes." She said, sadly confirming this.

Sora placed his hands on Goofy's shoulder and Donald's head startling them. He looked around, not even noticing the elegantly dressed Queen in front of him. I mean come on! How does he miss the mouse dressed in multiple shades of pink? She was one of the first things I noticed when we walked in to the room. It was hard not to. The pink of her dress contrasted with everything in the room plus I hate pink.

"Where's the King?" Sora asked.

I face palmed and sighed as the Queen just looked up at him, a small but shy smile on her lips as she watched the Keyblade Master. Donald jumped up and grabbed the boy's ear, dragging the boy down as he landed on the ground. The Keyblade Master winced as his ear was twisted in Donald's feathery fingers. Donald just shook his head in disapproval for showing no respect to the Queen. It technically wasn't Sora's fault. Last I checked he wasn't raised in a royal court so he had no idea_ how_ to treat a Queen.

"Excuse him. This is our friend, Sora." Donald said, "This is Twilight and Ghost."

The duck gestured behind him indicating Twilight and I, upon the moment he said our names. Twilight flashed the Queen a sincere smile and I just nodded my head, acknowledging her. She nodded at us before turning back to the brunette. Sora just smiled at her, giving her the same kind yet naïve look that he gave everyone.

"The King told me all about you in his letters. He said you're a very brave young man." Minnie said.

"So, do you know where he is?" Sora asked rubbing his nose, embarrassed for a moment.

He probably wasn't expecting King Mickey to say something like that, let alone tell his wife about him. They watched as she shook her head sadly and the boys all slumped with sighs. I glanced over at Twilight and stared at her for a moment as she messed with one of the brooms, making it turn around in circles until it was dizzy. Donald the first to recover straightened up.

"Your Majesty, what are Heartless doing in your castle?" Donald asked.

"Oh my…so those are the Heartless." She said calmly.

It was as if she were talking about… about…the weather. My mouth dropped open '_How the hell can she stay so calm, her castle has been invaded and she acts like she doesn't give a damn!' _My mind roared. It was something serious. I snapped my jaw close and took in a deep breath, trying to calm myself so I wouldn't explode from her nonchalance about the topic at hand.

"Don't worry; we'll take care of 'em!" Sora assured the queen.

"I know I can count on you, Sora." Minnie said, "Now there's something I'd like all of you to come and see. Would you please escort me to the audience chamber?"

The three boys and Twilight salute her, as I just rolled my eyes at them but nodded at the female mouse none the less. We all tilted our heads curiously as she suddenly gasped, an expression of pure horror crossing her face as she stared off into the distance, as if she realized something terrible. Twilight and I just exchanged glances and I inwardly groaned.

"I forgot to warn everyone else in the castle about the danger!" Minnie gasped. "We must be sure they're hidden somewhere safe!"

'_Wow, I never quite realized before of how ditzy she is.' _I mused to myself. Sora being Sora just smiled and took this new information in stride, like he always did. Sora smiled, obviously eager for a chance to explore the castle fully. Sora was like a cat, and like a cat his curiosity would get the best of him one of these days. I shook my head at the thought. The idea of him getting killed was hardly appealing. Though if the rest of that saying was true then he would come back…would that mean he'd be a zombie? Nah, he'd probably just be in Halloween Town at the moment.

"Okay, we'll go tell them!" He said reassuringly.

Donald stared at the boy in disbelief. Granted he had every right to. The castle was rather large to comb over. There also had to be a lot of servants too. Only the best for a King and Queen but I had a feeling that Mickey would rather hire servants than to find them jobless and on the streets. He had a big heart every time you saw him.

"The whole castle?" Donald asked.

"We just gotta split up, Donald." Goofy answered simply.

"I'll make sure that everyone knows what's going on." Sora said.

Donald shook his head vigorously, obviously against the idea of letting Sora roam the castle for free game. Even I had to admit that was a bad idea, with Sora's clumsiness and natural born curiosity and such. It would have been a recipe for disaster, no Moogles necessary. I grimaced at the thought. I think Mickey would like to come back to his castle intact. Not in splinters that clearly stated that Sora was there, besides, he's supposed to get stuck with babysitting duty with Minnie.

"No, Sora, you'll just get lost!" Donald said.

The boy blinked for a moment, realizing that the duck was right. He didn't know what lead where and was more likely to get lost, than find anyone. He smiled sheepishly, nodding in agreement with the duck in front of him, deciding that now was not the time to go and get lost/destroy anything. I nearly sighed in relief, glad that he was going with the plot of the game.

"Okay. Then I'll stay with the Queen." Sora said, "What about you two?"

I looked over at him wondering why he would even bother to ask me. I wasn't any better off than he was. I would get just as lost and I wouldn't be able to tell who were servants and who wasn't one at all, though I'm mainly thinking about the walking brooms. Heaven knows how many that Mickey had enchanted to do his bidding.

"Like I have any more idea of where I'm going." I replied.

"I'm directionally challenged." Twilight announced.

Twilight pointed to herself with a cheerful grin on her lips. I smiled at her, remembering that she wasn't very good with maps and when we were playing video games back home she constantly got lost. Now that she had someone to follow perhaps her aversions to maps would get better, or perhaps I was just being optimistic… Now there's a thought. Sora stared at her for a moment before turning back to the other two boys.

"All righty then, see ya later!" Goofy said.

We watched as they ran out of the library before the three of us turned to Minnie. She fluffed out her dress, trying to get rid of some unforeseen creases in it. I had no idea why she was doing that. It wasn't like the Heartless wouldn't go after her if she was primped as if to go to a ball or something. They had no mercy.

"Um, the audience chamber, right, ma'am?" Sora asked.

"Yes, Sora. Let's be on our way." Minnie said.

She looked up at the boy and nodded. I summoned my sword as we headed back into the hallway, glancing over at Twilight with a smirk; she caught the look and the challenge a smirk of her own forming. We raced ahead cutting a path for Sora and the Queen, Sora dealing with the ones that popped up behind them as they dashed after us.

As they reached the immense, purplish glowing doors to the audience chamber, Twilight and I stood a few feet away acting as a barrier in between the Heartless and the other two. Nothing was going to slip past us. I glanced back at Minnie, wondering how long this was going to take. It didn't take long in the game but I didn't know if it was different now.

"Just one moment." She said.

I turned back to a Shadow that was about to attack Twilight, sending it scurrying away with a sharp glance, before turning around to see the barrier breaking apart and a small door opening. Both Twilight and I walked forward until we were standing next to the group as Minnie looked up at the three of us.

"Now then…shall we?" She asked.

We nodded at her and walked in, Twilight, Sora, and I having to duck slightly to get in the door. Sora and Minnie glanced around for a moment as Twilight and I stared up at the horde of Bolt Towers that were slowly descending towards us. It didn't take long for them to come into the view of the others making Minnie gasp and place a hand in front of her face in shock.

"Not here, too!" Minnie gasped.

Sora glanced over at her from the corner of his eye. I could see the sympathy flash through his eyes as he looked at the horror struck queen. Heartless were tricky creatures to deal with and like darkness they could go anywhere at any moment. With light comes darkness, and such, blah, blah, blah, rant, rant, rant. Well, you get the point.

"I got 'em." Sora said.

"What did you forget about us?" Twilight asked.

Glancing over I hid a smile as I saw her sword quivering from nerves, a death grip on the hilt. We began running across the hall Minnie often times attacking the Heartless with the power of light. I ducked as one swung itself at me, I popped up stabbing the head, the only weak spot it had, and making it vanish. Things continued in this fashion, the Heartless never letting up, for a while until we made it to the throne. Sora, Twilight, and I turning around to face the oncoming Heartless as Minnie ran over to the throne.

"Come on, gimme a break!" Sora groaned.

My mouth twitched into a small smile. I stepped in front of him, glancing back at him from over my shoulder. He grimaced and lifted his sword higher, not to be out done by me. He did look tired though. I glanced to my side noticing that Twilight was fairing better than in her prior battles but she was still just as weary as Sora was. Then I noticed that I was breathing slightly harder than usual as well.

"No rest for the weary, eh?" I teased.

He turned to look at me, somewhat surprised to see me standing there ever so nonchalant. I wasn't scared, oddly enough. The thought of the danger around me almost made me laugh. I knew what was going to happen. All I would have to do would be to avoid any precarious situations on my own. I was probably the safest person aside from Twilight.

"Are you always this calm?" He asked.

I gave a small chuckle remembering a similar conversation that I had had before. I turned as I heard a low rumble coming from behind me and saw that the throne was moving. Sora confused glanced behind as well. He stared in surprise, not sure what was happening. Through all the time I played the game nothing could have prepared me for what happened next.

"Huh?" He asked.

I winced and hissed in pain as there was a flash of light. It felt like I was being stabbed everywhere repeatedly. Though it was only for a few seconds, those seconds seemed to last for a long time. I felt a hand on my shoulder and opened my eyes to see Twilight next to me with a worried expression on her face. I gave a pained smile and patted her hand reassuringly. She nodded and removed her hand turning to the Queen.

"The room below is called the 'Hall of the Cornerstone.'" Minnie told us, "Our castle has always been safe from worlds that are evil…thanks to the Cornerstone of Light which we keep down there."

I held my right hand horizontal in front of my face and watched it shake for a few seconds, before shoving both hands into my coat's pockets as I tried to still my shaking form. I took a deep breath as I struggled to calm myself, blocking the memory of the pain that the light had brought. My body still stung with every movement I made.

"The Cornerstone… of Light?" Sora asked

I glanced over at the boy as he ran to follow the Queen into the darkened stairwell. Twilight remained behind with me. We followed behind at a slower pace, but still quickly enough so that if Sora looked over his shoulder he would still see us right behind him. I swallowed and looked at Twilight, noticing the concern in her eyes.

"What happened to you?" She asked.

"I think I've found my Underworld." I replied.

I sighed and gave a slight smile. She raised an eyebrow and opened her mouth to ask something but I shook my head. She didn't want a fuss over her weakness in the Underworld, nor did I want one about my weakness with the Cornerstone. She should have understood that by now. But she didn't make a sound after I shook my head, realizing what it was I wanted.

"C'mon we don't want to keep them waiting, do we?" I asked.

She nodded and jogged next to me as we ran after the two, catching up to them in the middle of the stairs as they had been walking. I looked around at the room that was darkened and covered in dark thorns. I kept away from the swirling ball of light in the middle of the room because as I got closer I could feel my energy, drain away. Twilight on the other hand seemed drawn to it and as she got closer it seemed to brighten slightly. I looked over at the Queen. Donald and Goofy quickly joined us moments after we got down there.

"This is the castle's cherished Cornerstone. But look. The thorns…they must be the work of someone very evil. I wonder what this could mean…" She explained.

I blinked as green flames swirled in front of the Cornerstone. Twilight jumped and ran away from it. A translucent Maleficent appeared, staring at us with a hardened look in her eyes. I scowled at the witch, wincing ever so slightly as the Cornerstone shone brighter to counteract the darkness that Maleficent had brought.

"Maleficent!" Donald yelled in surprise.

"No way!" Sora cried.

The pale witch looked around for a moment, a sneer on her lips as she looked us over. I glared at her when her eyes met mine. She seemed rather surprised to see me fighting for the good guys obviously being who I was and all. And it was ironic. A being of darkness fighting for the side of good despite years and years of unwritten rules of good and evil. What can I say? I like to be original.

"Well, well, well. What have we here…?" She asked, as if she didn't already know. "If it isn't the wretched Keyblade holder, and his pitiful lackeys!"

My eye twitched at the 'pitiful lackey' thing but I remained quiet. She'd pay for that comment later, much, much later but she would pay. Donald on the other hand wasn't so… restrained. He brandished his wand in an attempt to look threatening. I looked at him, shaking my head. Somewhere out there my non-existent bunny slippers just ran for cover.

"What? Now you're gonna deal with me!" He threatened.

Twilight held out a hand to stop him but he ran ahead, leaping for the witch and going straight through her. I winced as he flew straight into the podium that the Cornerstone was sitting on with a painful thud. Maleficent's only acknowledged the duck by saying, not even turning around. _'What a rude witch…'_ I thought as I glared at her.

"All in good time. I promise you'll be able to partake of my vengeance. But you must be patient." She told him.

"Just what are you doing here, Maleficent?" Minnie demanded.

Maleficent swept an arm out before bowing. I nearly snorted. Maleficent was being totally over dramatic about all of this. The castle was nice and all but there was really no need to go and cast a spell over it. Not like Sora couldn't handle it. We were here so we could stop her in her tracks. I smirked and relished the idea of the angered look on her face once she found out she had failed to take over.

"Ah, Queen Minnie. Radiant, as always." Maleficent said. The tall woman straightened up and stated, "I'm here on a property venture. I want this castle for my own. However, it's a bit too 'bright'; for what I have in mind. I suppose I'll just have to fill every room with my personal touch of darkness."

Minnie glared at the taller, pale woman. I gave a silent snort at the thought of her decorating but continued watching as she reached towards the Cornerstone which immediately repelled her with a slight flash of light. I winced when she did. I gritted my teeth to drown out the pain that nearly brought me to my knees. Light hurt, more than I thought it would.

"You'd better stop right now if you know what's good for you!" Minnie cried.

"Ooh, how frightening." Maleficent said sarcastically.

I realized that as I hid a smile my thoughts were the same as hers. A small part of me recoiled in disgust, about thinking the same way that Maleficent would. The other part wasn't as surprised by this. Maleficent and I were somewhat the same, two beings of darkness, but I wasn't going to let that change what side I fought for. My path was set, even before the moment I became a denizen of darkness. I'd fight on the side that would keep Twilight safe. Twilight glanced over at me as my eyes danced with amusement. Minnie wasn't frightening like she was intending to be.

"Very well. I'll stop… just as soon as the castle belongs to me!"

She vanished into the green and black flames her evil laugh echoing throughout the hall. Twilight shivered as she looked around, hoping the echoing laugh would die out. Even I found the witch's laugh slightly unnerving. Though I did wonder if she practiced it in front of a mirror or if she was just crazy, thinking about it though it was probably the latter of the two. I glanced over at Sora, raising an eyebrow at him.

"What a hag." Sora muttered.

I blinked and looked down slightly as Minnie gave a soft whimper. She probably never raised a blade in her entire life. This would be the first time she had ever fought for her home, though she was pretty brave for standing up to the Heartless and Maleficent for the first time. One wouldn't even have been able to tell she was scared if it wasn't for the slight shaking of her hands.

"Nothing like this has ever happened before." Minnie said, "I looked through all the records in the library, but I couldn't find a single clue."

Donald walked over and the guys stood in silence for a moment, wondering what to do before Goofy jumped, raising one hand as he pointed to the sky. A smile was on his lips as his eyes shone brightly. I smiled. Leave it to Goofy to have a plan, even though I already knew it was coming. Twilight was also smiling at the guard.

"Ohh!" Goofy cried, realizing something.

Everyone turned to look at him in confusion, not understanding what was going on through the knight's head. It was hard to understand what he thought about things even though he openly expressed his thoughts and his feelings about things. Who knew Goofy was such a complex guy? I sure didn't expect it.

"We should go ask somebody who knows lotsa stuff that ain't in any book!" Goofy said.

"Merlin the Wizard!" Donald cried.

Donald immediately knew who to go to. After all, we had only met a handful of wizards and only one witch but we couldn't exactly ask Maleficent nicely if she would kindly remove the spell from the castle. She'd probably just laugh at us if we did ask such a stupid and useless question. Minnie nodded happily.

"Yes! That's perfect! Merlin just might know something about this mess. Let's ask his advice!" Minnie agreed.

"We saw him in Hollow Bastion, right?" Goofy asked.

I sighed and face palmed. _'Seriously?'_ I asked myself. The wizard was there the last time were in Hollow Bastion. Yuffie had said, 'hey, let's go to Merlin's!' How could anyone forget something like that? Donald and Sora nodded agreeing with Goofy. Merlin was one of their best bets, if the only bet. We couldn't call up Yin Sid; something I was very glad about. I didn't know if I would be able to hold my tongue a second time without arguing with him about the Nobodies.

"Yeah. Let's go!" Sora said.

"I think I'll stay here and lock myself in library," I said, "That is if you don't mind, of course, Your Majesty?"

I glanced over at Twilight for a moment. She stared at me in confusion as Minnie nodded, granting me permission to use her library. I smiled. All those books were now at the tips of my fingers. Hopefully I'd find something useful, or semi-useful. I'd literally kill for information, but strictly non-human life forms. I had too many human friends that I was rather fond of.

"Why?" Sora asked.

I blinked as I returned my attention to him. For a moment I just stared, blinking owlishly. Then I remembered that he wanted an answer. Scrambling my mind tried to find one that would suit his insatiable curiosity, on that wouldn't expose my true intentions. _'Still wondering how to break it to him that Twilight and I are friends with Nobodies.'_ I mused.

"I want to see if I can find anything else on the Users of Light and Dark." I explained.

"Oh, okay. Then we'll see you when we get back." Sora said.

He blinked for a moment before nodding in understanding. I started walking up the stairs, leaving Minnie behind to stare at the Cornerstone worriedly. I couldn't bear to stay down there any longer. The light made my bones ache so deeply it felt like I was on fire. I suppose Axel would have found it funny that I was so affected by such a simple thing. Twilight ran up next to me, keeping up with my pace with ease.

"Why do you want to look for more about the legend? Merlin said that it had been lost." Twilight said.

"I want to see if they have anything about returning Hearts to people." I said softly.

I glanced over at her, looking around slightly. Twilight's confused frown turned into a bright smile and she nodded, I looked over at her confused. I wanted to read all the books I could, hopefully finding something – anything that could possible help me with Axel's heartless situation. Not that Sora knew anything about Axel or Demyx. It would stay that way for a good while.

"Aren't you going with Sora and the others?" I asked.

She shook her head. She had a look on her face that made me feel like some sort of idiot. I guess Sora was starting to rub off on me. Of course she would want to help Demyx. She spent so much time with him and they had become fast friends through our travels. She would want to pay him back for the companionship he had offered us in our moments of solace.

"I'll help you, cause there's someone that I want to give a Heart back to as well." Twilight told me.

I blinked before giving a gentle smile, closing my eyes for a moment, opening them slightly as we reentered the throne room. It wasn't so bright now. The light no longer stung. My strength was returning. Yet it made me wonder if Twilight had felt the same in the Underworld or if it was just the way it was, light grew weaker while darkness was driven out.

"Yeah." I said as I looked over at her with a teasing smile, "Than you should probably tell the boys that you're staying here."

She gasped and ran off, sliding in a turn, out of the throne, landing on her side with a loud thud, making me wince. She got up, brushed herself off and took off running down the hallway. I chuckled as I walked out the door and headed over to the library. I placed my hands on my hips staring up at the tall shelves full of tomes. I heard the door open and looked over my shoulder with a grimace

"It's gonna take forever to get through this and we've got a time limit." I groaned.

She nodded and took off her sword and jacket placing them on a nearby table. I sighed and looked around, not even knowing where to start. We had a lot of books to pick through and there was just no way that we could get what we needed without accidentally skimming over the important stuff. This was going to be harder than I thought.

"Then we better work fast." Twilight said.

"Meet ya in the middle?" I suggested.

I smiled, shrugged off my coat and moved to the left furthest book shelf. It was time to get to work. I walked to one side of the room as Twilight smiled and went to the other side. She gave me a two fingered salute as she went to work. I nodded grimly and looked up at all the books. So many books, so little time.

"See ya there." She told me.

I grabbed one of the ladders and started from the top and headed to the bottom. Grabbing any book that might apply to Hearts and placing them on the ladder until I finished with that shelf. Grabbing the books that I had found I slide down the ladder and set them on a nearby table, before heading back up. I sighed, brushing my hair behind my ears, after we had been at it for two hours the two of us had finally reached the middle. We looked at the large stacks that were on the table.

'_Who knew there were this many books on Hearts?!' _I looked over as I heard Twilight sigh and gave a small smile as I picked up one of the books. Drawing a chair back with my foot I slid it out from under the table and sat down. Flipping open the book I looked at the table of contents and flipped through the pages. I heard a chair scrap the ground and glanced up as Twilight sat down at the table and grabbed a book. I dropped the one that I had been looking through onto the chair next to me starting the reject pile and grabbed another one.

* * *

Glancing up as the clock chimed, I looked across a much smaller pile at Twilight. They were useless, every single one of them. None of them had what we needed, or anywhere near close to what we wanted. I wanted to scream. All that wasted time. But we couldn't ask Minnie if she had any books on heart restoration and I wasn't sure how to get a hold of one of the brooms, let alone if they could talk.

"You find anything?" I sighed.

She shook her head and dropped her book onto the reject pile that was almost as tall as she was. I sighed placing the book onto my own reject pile and looked over at a broom servant. It seemed to be staring at us but I couldn't tell. It had no face, nor eyes to support my notion. Not that I cared. A broom never really bothered anyone.

"Can you put these back onto the shelves please?" I asked.

It gave a slight nod and I stood up, Twilight looked up at me placing the book down onto the table and followed me out of the library gloomily. She was disappointed with what little we found. She wanted an automatic, step by step how to on how to restore a heart but I don't think anyone has tried it before. We were probably going to be the first two people to actually ever attempt to restore a heart.

"Maybe, there just isn't a way to give people their Hearts back." Twilight said.

"There has to be. That stupid, creepy, disembodied voice alluded to it, so there has to be a way." I retorted.

"Yeah but remember most of the stuff that voice says doesn't even make sense." She sighed.

I looked at the ground for a moment frowning _'Perhaps you can save those who are doomed.' There's a way, there has to be. Dammit I'm too stubborn to give up like this, just cause we didn't find a solution right now doesn't mean that there isn't one.' _I paused for a moment as Twilight shoved the door to the throne room open and walked through. We quickly headed down to where the Cornerstone was to see Minnie still there a servant removing a chair. I blinked as I heard Donald's voice echo in the room saying something unintelligible. A poof of smoke appeared and I laughed quietly as the boys looked around confused. Donald turned around and crossed his arms with a disgruntled huff. Twilight and I chuckled as we walked over to them. Sora waved at us, giving us one of his natural, wide, grins.

"Perhaps, I'd better just see for myself." Merlin said.

We watched as he walked over to the Cornerstone and went, stroking his beard. I shook my head. Stroking his beard just made it a little weird and I could just tell that Twilight was struggling not to giggle. But the little wizard looked so old and frail as he walked up to the glowing sphere. It was hard to believe it. He hardly looked a day over eighty and yet right now he looked a lot older.

"Mm-hmm…interesting…" He mumbled.

"What's happening, Merlin?" Minnie asked.

Minnie looked up at the old wizard. Merlin continued to stare at the Cornerstone. His eyes were searching for something, anything that could give any indication of something. I looked over to Twilight who was no gripping the edge of her jacket and playing with it nervously. She had noticed something wrong with the Cornerstone. I simply couldn't. The light hurt too much. It almost hurt to even think about looking at.

"This is not good. In fact, I'm afraid, it's quite serious." He answered.

'_We got that part, thank you for stating the obvious. Perhaps you would like to be more specific for those of us that don't know the plot of the entire game, hmm?' _The wizard turned around, cleared his throat and began to wave his hands, making a silver door appear in a poof of smoke and a flash of light. Sora stared at the door.

"What's that?" Sora asked.

"My boy, that is a gateway to a special world. Someone in that world is responsible for what's going on in this castle. Of that, I'm certain." Merlin answered quickly with a hint of pride in his voice.

Donald was eager to fix the problem at hand. He was grinning at the prospect of saving the day in front of his queen. It was a chance to protect his home, a little closer than he was the last time he saved the worlds, and also protect the wife of his good friend, Mickey. I smiled as I thought about Daisy, who wouldn't be stopping by until later. I made a note to tease him about it when she got here.

"Oh boy!" Donald shouted.

"We knew we could count on you, Merlin!" Goofy proclaimed.

"Then we should go get him!" Sora said.

Sora walked over and placed his hands on the door handles but Merlin waved his hand stopping the brunette from opening the doors. Sora looked up at him confused. I could tell he wasn't sure why the wizard was stopping them. As we simply stood there the thorns seemed to grow darker and darker by the second. The light of the Cornerstone didn't hurt me as much anymore but part of me told me that was a bad thing.

"Wait a moment!" Merlin cried. He paused for a moment before walking away slightly saying, "The perpetrators must be stopped, of course. But there's something else to do first. Somewhere in that world, there should be another door that's identical to this one. I believe our enemies are utilizing that door. As long as it remains open, the castle will be in grave danger. Listen carefully, Sora. You must find that door. And when you do… lock it with your Keyblade."

I rolled my eyes slightly at this. '_The kid may be slow but he isn't that dumb Merlin, c'mon even I give Sora more credit than that.' _I thought. Sora simply nodded. It was old information, something he already knew but he decided not to call the wizard out on it.

"Got it!" Sora said.

"You can count on us!" Donald proclaimed.

Donald placed a hand on his heart, as if making a solemn oath to someone, perhaps even the King. Twilight just saluted the wizard as I nodded my head. We could handle anything that world threw at us. We were ready and we were prepared but Merlin walked back towards us and gave a warning look of caution.

"Now, one more thing. You're heading into a very special world." Merlin said.

Everyone turned to the door and looked at it. It looked like almost any other door here, silver, shiny, plain. It didn't appear to hold any special world. It didn't look magical and the only sign that it was the way it appeared and because Merlin told us this was so. We weren't going to doubt him, especially after we had seen it appear with our own eyes.

"While you're there, the nature of that world may tempt you to do something dark. You must resist that temptation at all costs!" He warned us.

"What do you mean?" Sora asked.

Merlin wagged a finger at the boy with a smile on his lips, as if scolding a small child, or a puppy, behind him not even turning around. I shook my head. He could have had the decency to tell us what it was or what was going on. Whatever, we'd figure it out soon enough. It was, after all, somewhat hard to miss once we got there.

"You'll know soon enough. I have faith in you, my lads and lasses!" Merlin said.

Sora nodded and walked forward as Merlin moved over to stand by the Queen. At least she would be protected if the wizard was down there. I didn't know if Maleficent would try to send Heartless down there or not but it was a little more comforting to know they could defend themselves in case that happened. The boy gripped the handles on the door and with some struggle, pulled them open and walked through with a flash of light.

* * *

**On to Timeless River.... *sigh* great**


	15. Back in Time

I have returned! YAY! *crowd cheers* Anyways, thanks everyone for their patience. Kita-san did an amazing job as a Beta, so endless thanks to her. Just to put it out there I hate Timeless River, no offence to all of you who actually like it but I was bored out of my mind playing and writing it. This chapter literally took me over two weeks to write. Lots of shout outs for this one: twilight-yuna17, Anexi Naie Taylor, RainCloud007, SpringBorn, Nagasha, demyx-axelfan, Princess Zathura, Kingdomheartsgirl132, Amber-Wolf-Elemental, and Axel's Pyro Girl.

Disclaimer: You really think I own Kingdom Hearts? Hah! I wish. Ghost and Twilight are mine though. :)

* * *

Chapter 15: Back in Time

As I walked through the door, I winced as light continued to suck away my energy and make me feel as if I were on fire. I laughed as Goofy and Sora were spat out of the door, landing face first as the rest of us walked out, Twilight tripping and landing next to them. I looked around quickly at the black and white scenery and the simplified art style. Goofy pushed himself up, shaking his head before looking up.

"Hey, look! There's the Cornerstone of Light!" Goofy announced.

Sora pushed himself up, so he could walk over to it before looking at himself and the surrounding area. There was a look of confusion on his face as his brain tried to process what his eyes were seeing. I winced. The Cornerstone was shining brighter than it had in the castle. I felt like my insides were being scorched by the light of the stone. Twilight gave me a look of concern but I just shook my head.

"What's going on?" Sora asked, "Everything's black and white."

'_And muffled, man it's like listening to a mono-stereo.' _I inwardly griped. I hated mono-stereo. Twilight and I shared a knowing look followed by a grimace. This world was one of the most annoying ones in the entire game. I sighed, looking over at our companions. Donald was looking at himself. He waved a foot in the air before looking at his hands with curiosity.

"Hey, this is kinda like…um…uh…" Donald mumbled.

"Déjà vu?" Goofy asked.

Twilight and I shared a smile since Goofy, unusually, was the one to supply the word this time. Twilight was struggling not to laugh at the duck. It was proof that he wasn't as dumb as those people on fanfiction liked to think that he was. He was intelligent, even if he was clumsy and smacked around a bit, especially by Donald. _'Silly fangirls,'_ I thought sadistically, _'They never seem to capture his personality well.'_ Instead of calling Goofy out on it, Donald jumped and nodded.

"Yeah, that's it!" Donald shouted.

Sora turned away from the Cornerstone to look at us. There was an incredulous look on his face as he stared at our non-human companions. Twilight and I might have been skeptical of Donald's proclamation had we not already played the game and beaten it – multiple times. That brought a smile to my lips as I thought of all that time I spent playing the game. _'Ah, good times… Good times…'_ Who knew it would help keep me alive?

"Really?" Sora asked, "Have you been here before?"

I blinked as movement caught my eyes and I saw the classic _'I haven't yet been turned into a dog' _Pete heading past us to The Pier. Then I cocked my head in wonder. What animal _was_ Pete exactly? The future Pete looked like a cross between a bear and a dog that had been beaten with the wrong end of the ugly stick. Past Pete just… I don't know. He still looked like a half bear, half dog but he wasn't as ugly as Future Pete. I smirked. _'I guess Pete isn't like wine. He doesn't seem to age well,'_ I thought with a dark smirk.

Glancing over the big guy stopped and walked up to us. I shook my head, simply knowing that this was going to end badly. I didn't even need to play the game to know what was going to happen. Sora and co. were going to rush in, try to bash heads, only to find out they were beating the tar out of the wrong guy. I opened my mouth to say something but Pete beat me to it.

"Hey you! Seen any bad guys around here?" Pete asked.

I snorted as I watched Pete's reaction as all three boys point at him simultaneously. The look of confusion quickly melted into a look of pure horrified outrage as he stared at them gaping. Then he glared at us, as if daring the audacity of our accusation. The boys got ready to fight as Pete brought his fist up. Twilight looked at me and I rolled my eyes.

"Why I oughta…" Pete muttered.

The four stared at each other for a few seconds before Pete lowered his fists and placed them on his hips. I shook my head, trying not to picture him in a flowery apron and an old fashioned 1920's dress. I just chuckled instead which made Twilight stare at me in confusion. She didn't know what I was thinking but I'd fill her in later, just for laughs. We both knew a good joke was meant to be shared.

"Bah! I don't have time to waste on punks like you," Pete said, "So, I guess I'll go easy on ya!"

We watched as he ran off again. I shook my head. It was like watching a limping old dog. You wanted to shoot it to put it out of its misery – a mercy killing if you will. The way his stomach bounced as he ran, er, waddled was enough to make my stomach churn. He was one of those people you knew who could never run a marathon – not unless they were purposefully trying to kill themselves. He practically hopped from one foot to the other as he ran.

"Well, there's our villain." Sora said.

Goofy and Donald nodded as I raised an eyebrow. Sora was so quick to jump the gun. Donald and Goofy were rather quick to be led around. No wonder Riku said that Sora didn't pick the brightest of friends. But perhaps he would think differently if he met Twilight and I. That was if were still around when he met us. For all I know we could go home tomorrow and wake up to find it was all just some wacky dream.

"I don't thin-"

Twilight trailed off as the three of them ignored her and ran off to The Pier following Pete. She gave an exasperated sigh, as if finally realizing what I dealt with when I tried to stop Sora from doing something stupid. I sighed and clapped a hand on the staring girl's shoulder. She looked up at me with a weary expression, or at least as expressive as one could get in an old black and white cartoon.

"Let's see how long it takes before those hotheads figure out that that's not the right Pete." I told her.

Twilight smirked and nodded chasing after the boys to The Pier. I smiled as I watched her run off, over her disappointment already. I shoved my hands into my coat pockets and strolled my way to The Pier to watch the fight. I walked in as Sora and the others were in the middle of their fight. I looked around, spotting Twilight sitting on the ground with her back against the fence. I walked over stopping abruptly as Pete ran in front of me Sora chasing after him, his Keyblade ready to strike.

I shook my head as they passed and continued on until I was standing next to the other girl, hoisting myself up onto the top of the fence. Sitting down on the top rung, I hooked a foot around the bottom one to keep myself stable, and leaned forward, arms on my knees. I watched the fight that lasted for about a minute or so, rolling my eyes as the original version of Pete sat on the ground with a thud.

"What's you punks' beef with me anyway?" Pete demanded. "Who are ya? You new around here?"

"Cut the act." Sora ordered.

I glanced up at the boat whistle but it caused Pete to jerk around with a

"Whoa!"

I blinked as he stood up, twisting away from us and winced as his back gave an audible crack making him sit on the ground in pain. Twilight crinkled her nose since she disliked the noise she heard. I had to agree with her. Pete's back popping like that couldn't have been healthy. But if it left a behind a weakness that the future Pete would have then it could come handy for future battles. With a confused look on his face Goofy walked over to Sora.

"You know, somethin' doesn't seem quite right here." Goofy said and then to Pete he asked, "Are you sure you're Pete?"

He twisted around to shake his fist at Goofy. There was a look of outrage on Pete's face but I highly doubt he was scaring anyone. After all he had proved that his fighting was mediocre at best. We could handle anything he dished to us since he wasn't that great of a fighter, nor did he command that much respect in our eyes seeing as he was going to become one of the bad guys that truly got underneath our skin.

"Well, of _course_ I'm Pete. I'm the captain of the steamboat. So stop botherin' me, see?" Pete said indigently.

He shook his fist violently causing his back to crack again turning around so he didn't hurt himself. I shook my head, thinking of the phrase: _'Don't kick a dog when he's down.'_ Or would it perhaps be a bear/dog? In Pete's case I wasn't quite sure but I could lean towards the bear when looking at him from a distance but up close I was leaning more towards a dog. Who knew what Walt Disney was thinking when he began drawing half of these characters?

"So hit the road!" Pete shouted. "I gotta go find the little runt what stole my boat!"

Goofy turned to the other two, with a hand up to cover his mouth. I shook my head. _'As if that would stop Pete from hearing you!' _I thought sarcastically, _'Seriously!'_ I wanted to smack myself across the face. If I started thinking like Donald and Goofy after this journey I might just kill myself. The loss of the precious brain cells would be too much for me to bear. Twilight would probably follow after me so she wouldn't go insane.

"Gawrsh, maybe we made a mistake." Goofy said, not even whispering in the slightest.

"I'm starting to think the same thing." Sora agreed, not even trying to be discrete, "He hasn't even called any Heartless."

The other two nodded and Goofy walked over to the past version of Pete. I cracked my neck as I watched him from my perch on the fence. Twilight looked over at me and grinned, knowing how bored I was getting. This was starting to wear on my nerves a little bit. If only we could speed this up a bit but I knew that might lead to disastrous results. It was best to leave the meddling until later on. Around the time we go back to Hollow Bastion or should I say Radiant Garden?

"Sorry we attacked ya like that, Capt'n Pete." Goofy said.

Pete turned around sharply, standing up. There was a dangerous look in his eyes as he glared at Goofy and I sighed. Goofy walked right into that one. Twilight snorted and covered her mouth to hold in her laughs. She knew what I thought about jumping in before they could fully examine the situation.

"Oh yeah? Well, if you're really sorry, then go find my steamboat." Pete ordered.

Sora raised his hands slightly and said, trying to calm him down. It was useless. Once Pete got this mad there was no calming him down until we did what he wanted. I sighed to myself. Off on another side quest, as if we didn't have better things to do with our time. _'Wait, wouldn't this make it a side-quest on a side-quest or would it just be a part of the original side-quest since you have to find the boat to find future Pete stealing the Cornerstone?'_ I mused to myself.

"Y-yes sir!" Sora stammered.

Pete's brain seemed to return to normal. Even if normal was a long shot when involving Pete. He fell back down clutching his back. Oddly enough I felt no pity for him. If he was truly smart he wouldn't have fought Sora, Donald or Goofy at all. I felt like he sort of brought it on himself. I knew Twilight didn't feel any sympathy for Pete. Sora and the guys looked regretful. I rolled my eyes. If Pete really wanted to avoid the fight he could have but he didn't.

"Ooh, my achin' back." Pete groaned.

The boys ran up to him, rubbing his back down. I looked down as Twilight sighed and stood up, brushing dirt off her pants, I glanced back at the boys as they walked over to us and jumped down from the fence. I looked over as Twilight ran up to them and I waited till they came closer before walking over to them. I glanced back, ignoring Twilight and Sora, before turning back to the others as we approached the Cornerstone. Sora put his hands on his hips.

"I thought for sure Pete was the bad guy." Sora murmured.

"Aw, that would be too easy." Donald said.

Donald shook his head with a slight shrug. _'I wouldn't be so sure about that, Donald,'_ I mused to myself with a smirk across my lips. I didn't say anything. I'd rather see the looks on their faces when they realize that Pete really was the one doing this but it was Future Pete and Past Pete helps along with the fight. But then it got me thinking, if Past Pete helps us, does it means Future Pete would remember fighting us and against his past self and that he would remember fighting with us and fighting some random stranger who looked a lot like him? _'Man, time travel makes everything confusing.'_

"C'mon. Let's try to find that steamboat." Goofy said.

At those words Sora slumped over in defeat. Of course Goofy would try to make sure Sora followed through with his promise. Being as ever so honest that he was, he was the only good role model for Sora besides Leon or Yuffie. It was nothing against Cloud or anything but he brooded too much and it wasn't healthy to hold that much in. He really needed to vent once in a while, although the idea of Sora acting like Cloud sounded like some cheesy fanfiction with plot holes and alternate universes. I knew I certainly wasn't a good influence on people…most of the time.

"I guess we _did _say we would…" Sora said.

"Hey, we've got a door to find!" Donald snapped.

Sora winced and scratched the back of his head. I sighed. I should have known that he would completely forget once we got here. He was so predictable sometimes. Honestly, I don't know what he'd do without someone constantly looking out over him. I shuddered at the thought of him doing this entire journey on his own.

"Oh, yeah!" Sora said, in realization.

"I don't see any doors." Donald said.

I rolled my eyes as Donald looked around, as if he truly expected a door to just magically be there. None of our side-quests were that easy, even he should know that. I glanced down at him and gave a slight smirk. Nonchalantly, I waved my hand, motioning over to the floating window that had appeared a few minutes ago when the boys were distracted by Pete. They didn't seem to notice what I was motioning to.

"No doors, but I did spot something interesting." I said.

The boys looked to where I was pointing and Sora walked over to the floating window. He stopped a few feet away, tilting his head as he stared at the curious window. I shook my head. It's not like it was going to attack him or something but I would so laugh if it did. I mean come on! Windows that attack people would be rather funny. Or maybe it's just me that would get a kick out of something like that.

"Huh? What's this?" Sora asked.

I watched as Donald moved over to the window's side, jumping up to pull on the drawstring. I stepped back as the boys moved forward to look in the window, like they were watching a movie and not what had happened a few minutes before hand. I blinked as there was a slight flash from the corner of my vision and turned in time to see the curtain shut. Sora stared at it confused for a moment. He pouted as he thought.

"What was that?" Sora asked.

"Heartless goin' out…" Goofy murmured.

Goofy blinked still staring at the closed window. Donald seemed just as fascinated. As a magician everything unexplainable by natural occurrences in science interested the duck. That much was obvious as Donald's eyes were alight with awe as he looked at the window. I shook my head. Twilight sighed, showing she was getting as bored as I was. But we both knew a battle was coming soon so we weren't pushing the situation.

"…And us, coming in." Donald continued.

Sora still confused looked over at us

"What does it mean?" Sora asked all of us.

I looked over at Donald as he pulled the drawstring again but nothing happened. I crossed my arms and put my weight on my right leg, bored with the conversation. Whatever happened to attack first, ask questions later – situation that I felt called for it. Oh, well, Sora would get it eventually. Maybe, just maybe, as this went on he would learn a bit more and know when to fight and when to talk. But I wasn't going to hold my breath.

"Let's get rid of those Heartless!" Sora said determinedly.

"Then what'll we do?" Goofy asked

"We'll worry about that later!" Sora said, waving it aside.

I glanced over at Twilight. She shook her head in disapproval. Sora's planning skills were amazing, were they not? He was going to get himself killed or turned into a Heartless again, whichever came first. I'm pretty sure Axel wouldn't have minded too much if Sora got turned into a Heartless. He'd have Roxas back and I'm sure Axel missed Roxas, even if he hadn't voiced the 'feeling' out loud. Axel wasn't one to do that.

"He's wonderful at planning ahead, isn't he?" She asked sarcastically.

I smirked for a moment. She narrowed her eyes and crinkled her nose as she watched the guys. She didn't even notice the amused expression on my face. _'More fun for me…'_ I thought to myself. At least she would know I was teasing her. With Sora I wasn't so sure he knew when I was being sarcastic or serious. It was a terrible thing since I could offend him at any time.

"I thought being sarcastic was supposed to be my job." I asked.

She glanced over at me, tearing her eyes away from the arguing boys.

"Then what's my job?" She asked.

I blinked and shrugged slightly before heading over to one of the windows. She stood there, dumbfounded, unsure of what to say or do since I hadn't given a response to her question. My smirk grew as I walked away from her and when I was about half way to the window I turned over my shoulder to look at her. My eyes took in the confused and slightly concerned look in her eyes. It was so much fun messing with her.

"Comic relief?" I suggested.

"Hey!" She cried indignantly.

She followed me, waving her fists after me. I couldn't help but stare at her as she made me laugh as I headed towards the boys who had finally chosen a window. We were quickly sucked through the window as Donald pulled the drawstring. I winced as we were pulled through by the force of light, opening my eyes only when the light had faded some. Looking around I blinked as I looked at the wacky construction building.

"What're they building?" Sora asked, confused.

"Look out!" Goofy yelled

Sora looked behind him as a Hammer Frame Heartless fell down onto the platform that we we're standing on. I watched as Mickey swung down on a rope knocking the Heartless away from us. Mickey swung away and up towards safety. I blinked in surprise. I had almost forgotten that he did that. Luckily no one was standing in the King's way or they might have been sent flying off the platform with the Heartless.

"The King!" Donald announced in surprise.

The mouse landed on a beam above the group and waved to us below. Twilight blinked and then waved back with a cheery smile on her lips. I decided to humor the mouse so I gave him a two fingered salute. He seemed okay with it since his smile seemed to grow a little now that someone was waving back to him. Goofy tilted his head as he looked up at Mickey. He seemed confused by the odd little mouse.

"Gee, he seems kinda different somehow…" Goofy remarked.

My eyes narrowed as movement caught my eye on the top beams. I didn't even have to look up to know the dark creatures were above us. Nor did I have to play the games to know there would be Heartless. It always happened. A scene became happy and then bam! Something bad happened to the hero/heroine of the story. Heartless would be one of those many things. I wrinkled my nose as I pulled out my blade.

"Heartless! I knew it!" Sora yelled, then he turned to Mickey and waved as he shouted, "You really saved the day!"

We watched as the Heartless dropped down, shaking the platform slightly. Everyone got into a fighting stance as the Heartless drew closer around us. I narrowed my eyes, swinging at a Heartless that had gotten too close for comfort. It backed off, eyeing my blade. I smirked darkly, knowing that the creature of darkness stood no chance against us.

"Now, let's get those Heartless!" Sora said.

I sighed as the platform sent everyone up into the air. I swung my sword in mid-air, knocking one of the Heartless off the platform. I landed and wobbled as the platform moved under me. I raised an eyebrow at Twilight as her eyes lit up like a fire. A loopy smile slid across her face as she looked at me. I could almost see the excitement burning in her eyes like fire.

"Woot!" She cried.

She smiled and was launched into the air again. I sighed as I was sent into the air, hitting another Heartless, before landing low in a crouch. The platform steadied as there were no longer any Heartless to turn it into a trampoline. Sora straightened up, looking around for more of the dark creatures but none were to be found. It meant we had cleaned this area out and no longer had to worry about them for now.

"How'd you like that?" Sora asked.

I blinked as Mickey ran over. The mouse king rapidly shook Sora's hand. He followed up with a wave of the hand and ran off leaving everyone confused. I blinked once more before smiling. _'It's funny if the real King Mickey remembered this… Perhaps that's how he knew about Sora… Heh, guess I'll never know.'_ I mused. It was a shame but I wasn't going to waste time crying over something like that. Goofy turned looking around and pointed over at another floating window.

"Hey, look!" Goofy cried.

I looked around, quickly spotting the floating window. Sora, Goofy, and Twilight walked over as I crossed my arms and stood back letting them watch as Donald pulled the draw string. There was a flash and I winced before looking around to see that we had returned to the Cornerstone. Sora looked at all of us with a confused look on his face.

"What…?" Sora asked.

"Somebody sure was angry." Goofy remarked.

'_Somebody? SOMEBODY?! That was Maleficent! How could you not tell!' _I cried silently in my head_._ Goofy shrugged. I stared at him baffled. How could he not know? They only fought Maleficent a hundred times over. Was it really that hard to tell who the voice was? I mean it had been a year or so but still that voice should be ground into his head. Donald shook his head, seeming slightly upset that he couldn't tell who it was.

"I don't understand."

Sora nodded and I sighed. Twilight glanced over at me. Concern lined her eyes and seemed to ooze out of her very being. I shook my head. There was so much for us to do and I felt so tired already. I guess this is how Twilight felt when we were in the Underworld. Hopefully I wouldn't need her to drag me out of this one. That would be embarrassing and my pride would definitely suffer a deep blow. But as always I would heal after some time.

"Let's just try to clear out the Heartless first. This place is okay, but we've got three more spots to check." Sora continued.

The boys and Twilight nodded and we walked over to another window. Again the light was painful but it was starting to lessen slightly. I smiled when I looked around. We were standing in the middle of a shrunken town. Twilight bent down to look into one of the houses. There was a childish smile on her lips as she peered through the window. The boys weren't as calm as we were. They were looking around frantically wondering how it could have gotten like this.

"What?!" Donald yelled in confusion.

"The town's shrunk!" Sora shouted in shock.

"Or do ya think maybe we got bigger?" Goofy suggested.

Looking around Sora spotted a tower with small canons sticking out. I rolled my eyes. Those weren't toys. They were going to try to shoot us in a few minutes. This was going so slowly. It was almost painful by just standing there but I knew we had work do to so I had to grin and bear it. Unless we could find a way to make it go faster.

"Hey! Look at the toy cannons!" Sora remarked.

The boys walked over to look at it closer and Twilight moved over to me. I looked up at her with dispassionate eyes. I was so tired and I already hated the fact that this was taking so long. Every moment we spent there was more torture to me. Anywhere would be better than here. I'd even go to Tron's world with that stupidly annoying music in the background that just ground on your nerves.

"What's up with you? You've been all depressed and moody since we got here." Twilight said.

I blinked and looked around gloomily at her for a moment. She understood what I was feeling. Therefore she was the only one I could go to even vent about what I was feeling. Sora wouldn't understand. He was perfectly fine with running around in the darkness or in the light. He could bear it while I could not. While Twilight could not.

"I never liked Timeless River and since we're close to the Cornerstone of Light, my energy is being drained." I explained, "Like I said before I think I've found my Underworld."

Twilight opened her mouth to say something but I forced her head down, ducking along with her, as an Aeroplane Heartless dive bombed us. My sword appeared in my hand and I thrust upward into the bottom of one of the Heartless, it vanishing as my sword went all the way through. I sighed as more Heartless appeared and the tower in the middle of the town started shooting. Sora jumped on top of the tower and directed the shooting of it, as I lazily swung my sword into another Heartless.

'_This is aggravatingly dull. I am so __bored__, not to mention tired because of that stupid Cornerstone. I am never going to vacation here when this is all over, I am going to Halloween Town at least things are interesting there.'_ I glanced around, noticing that the others were at the now open window, staring at the screen. I sighed again and moved over to them, getting sucked through and landing back in the courtyard. I looked at the last two windows and grimaced. I looked over at the boys who were arguing over which one they should go into next.

"Why don't we split up, and make this go faster." I suggested, "When we're done we'll tell each other what happened in their window."

Donald seemed to hesitate for a moment but Sora jumped on the idea and nodded his head. I began to wonder if Sora disliked this world too. The games had never really gotten into his likes and dislikes. And if they had he may have seemed more like a person and less like a game character. I mean does he like the color blue or maybe he likes black? He seemed decent in the games but now that I'm here I may as well as get to really know the kid, right?

"Sure!" Sora said enthusiastically.

"I call the black hole one, you get the burning building!" I cried.

I grabbed Twilight's wrist and dragged her over to one of the windows. She didn't even have time to protest, let alone say anything at all before we disappeared into the portal. We left behind a confused Sora, Donald and Goofy. After Twilight and I entered the window and we looked around. Furniture was being sucked into the black hole at an alarming rate.

"Why'd you want this one?" Twilight asked.

"Cause' I hate those damn cars. You have no idea how many times those things killed me." I explained smirk.

She laughed and I glanced over at her with a questioning look. Neither of us seemed to pay attention to the furniture that was being sucked away but it wasn't like anything bad was going to happen. Mickey wasn't here yet. He was probably with Sora and the others, shaking their hands or panicking like he's supposed to.

"You had trouble with the cars, too!" She explained.

I rolled my eyes at her outburst. This was helping me forget how much I hated this level. I turned to her, smiling. She was grinning back at me with that happy go lucky grin of hers that always made me smile as well. How she could always find something to smile about I didn't know but I did appreciate it since it could normally make me smile as well.

"Yep."

My smile widened and I looked over to where Mickey was panicking. We couldn't play anymore. We had to get down to business now. I jerked my head over to him as the Heartless popped up. He looked scared, even if his face wasn't really that expressive. He didn't even have a weapon to defend himself with. It was slightly unfair to the King.

"Well, shall we?" I asked.

"After you, mademoiselle." Twilight teased.

She bowed dramatically, over exaggerating the motion with a taunting smirk on her lips. I guess I was a bad influence on her. She's starting to pick up on some of my characteristics. Demyx would be heartbroken, though I'm using the term lightly, to find she had turned into a copy of me. Axel might not mind as much. I shook my head. This was no time to be day dreaming.

"No, no. You first, I insist." I said.

"How about together?" She asked.

She blinked for a moment. We weren't going to let the other one attack alone so there was really only her suggestion that would satisfy the both of us. I tapped a finger on my chin my eyes cast upward for a moment, even though we both already knew what my answer would be, before I even said it. Then I shrugged with a smirk on my lips as I drew my blade. This was so much more fun that hanging with Sora all the time, I was with someone who actually understood my dry humor.

"Sure." I replied.

With that we charged at the Rapid Thruster Heartless. After defeating the Heartless, I stretched my arms over my head, pausing in mid-stretch to watch amused as Twilight got her hand vigorously shaken by the appreciative mouse. I smiled as she waved at him as he ran away. I chuckled slightly as he disappeared and we both turned around to see the window. Walking over, Twilight stopping in front of it, I pulled the drawstring, observing Twilight as she watched the show.

'_What's going through her head? She hasn't been as whacky as she normally is?' _I glanced over at the window as we got sucked through. Looking around I spotted the boys and pointed to them and Twilight waved. We began to walk over to the guys as they spotted us. They looked slightly singed but I didn't feel bad for having them take care of the burning building. _'Those stupid cars drive me insane.'_ I thought darkly.

"I guess we got the last one." I murmured.

She nodded as the boys ran up to us. I didn't even listen to what the others were saying to deep in my thoughts, only to jerk out of them when I caught the angry look on Sora's face. He looked livid and it surprised me to see such a negative look on his face since he was normally smiling often. But he wasn't that expressive, since after all, we were in a really old cartoon. They didn't really have a lot of expression that wasn't overly exaggerated in those old cartoons.

"It was Pete after all!" Sora cried outraged.

"Why, he tricked us!" Donald cried.

Donald stomped his foot in outrage. I looked down at him, seeing the anger and the way his feathers looked slightly ruffled at the mere mention of Pete. Goofy, being the more logical one, shook his head in disagreement. At least he thought things through, unlike Sora and Donald. At least they had their hearts in the right places. They meant to do the right thing but some of the things they did were just so infuriatingly annoying.

"Still, something doesn't seem right." Goofy disagreed.

Sora crossed his arms. He looked down with a confused expression on his face. He seemed to be trying to piece together what he knew from what Goofy had told him. I shook my head. It was going to drive me insane, I swear. Did we really have to spell it out to him that there were totally obvious differences between the two Petes. One was just biting at the chomp to have a fight and the other was sneaky and underhanded. I wonder which one was which… I rolled my eyes.

"The Pete we met here had kind of an attitude, but he didn't seem like a bad guy…" Sora said.

Twilight and I both gave exasperated sighs and the boys turned to us. I wanted beat them over the heads. We were obviously going to have to give it to them or else we'd be there all day. I hated this world enough. I didn't want to spend more time there than necessary. I wanted it to be the sort of in and out visit. You know, that once you get there, you don't waste any time and get done what you needed done instead of wasting time!

"That's because the Pete we met wasn't a bad guy." Twilight sighed in exasperation.

"Yet." I corrected, "We've met past Pete. We're looking for future Pete."

Sora's mouth dropped open and he jerked forward in surprise. He obviously hadn't thought of anything like this. Donald and Goofy seemed just as surprised as Sora was. But then their surprise melted into realization. It was rather obvious now that someone had pointed it out. I mean come on! I figured it out my first time playing the level. Mind you I also had access to internet. Ah, how I miss having internet access. I wonder if anyone from my world has tried to email me, though I could guarantee someone had…darn college. They must really wonder where I'm at. Oh, well. In the words of Tifa and Aerith: Dilly dally, shilly shally.

"Wait! You mean there's _two_ Petes?" Sora shouted.

I smiled and nodded. I folded my arms neatly across my chest as I slowly closed my eyes, as if pondering the question. Twilight covered her mouth to hold back the mad hysteria I saw bubbling in her eyes. She desperately wanted to laugh. Sora's expression on his face was laugh worthy material. I felt my own laughter bubbling up in my chest, desperate for escape. But somehow I managed to maintain it.

"Quite the conundrum, isn't it?" I asked

Twilight nodded in agreement with a smile on her face. Suddenly she became solemn, shaking her head sadly, as if frowning upon Pete's actions. She folded her arms. Almost crossly she looked up at the black and white sky, unable to tell the difference between sky and cloud since it all really looked the same. I noticed she was trying harder not to laugh and to be serious about this for once in her life, even though we were both just horsing around.

"He's completely defying the Time/Space Continuum. That's never a good thing to tamper with." Twilight added, just to confuse them even more.

Sora and the others stared at the two of us confused, mouths open. We glanced at each other and then back at them before bursting out laughing. They probably hadn't expected such insight from Twilight since she was always joking around and smiling, nor did they expect something like that from me since I hardly ever joked around. Today's just full of surprises, isn't it? Donald sighed and looked around pointing toward the Waterway.

"Look!" Donald cried.

Twilight turned around as I looked over my shoulder, eyes narrowing at the familiar back that was standing there and attempting to give an evil laugh. My left eye twitched as I watched him. '_Don't analyze the evil laugh, Ghost, just don't. Wait isn't something missing? GOD DAMMIT!' _I mentally screamed. How could I have missed this? I was too caught up in my own jokes to realize the Cornerstone was missing.

"Now that castle's as good as ours!" Pete proclaimed proudly.

Pete looked around, checking to see if anyone there. When he saw no one he ran off to the Waterway. I hissed through my teeth, anger at myself at letting him do it and hatred for Pete for doing it. Now we had to go after him and we all know what happens next. We have that stupid fight with him that takes forever and then we chase him and fight again… I might just shoot myself before the game ends, you know, to save myself from going insane.

"That's the Pete we know!" Sora said.

"Bad, bad, bad!" Donald chanted.

I started running off following him, Twilight close behind. As Sora and the others finally noticing that the Cornerstone was gone. I'd have shouted some witty remark but the closer I got to the Cornerstone the less energy I had. It only proved I was going in the right direction. I guess it was supposed to be a comforting thought. I heard the boys yelling but not running Twilight stopped and turned around.

"Move it or lose it boys!" Twilight yelled.

I had kept on going stopping when I reached the Waterway. The boat already had the Cornerstone hooked up to it. I then began running faster. There was no way I was letting that idiot get away with the Cornerstone, even if the stupid thing hurt me. Though, now that I stopped to think about it, it was rather funny that someone from the darkness, like me, was trying to protect something that brought forth light. It was irony at its finest, but I'm digressing… The Cornerstone was my priority, not my life choices.

"Dammit!" I swore.

I blinked as 'past' Pete ran past me huffing and puffing only to be knocked away by his future self. I shook my head and snuck behind Pete as he watched the other fly away. Jumping onto the boat and gritting my teeth against the stabs of pain I started unhooking the rigging, wincing when the others caught up. _'Gotta get the Cornerstone, gotta get the Cornerstone, gotta get the Cornerstone.'_ It was a mantra that kept repeating in my head, despite the pain and the piercing light.

"The Cornerstone!" Donald yelled.

Pete jumped onto the cage and glanced down catching sight of me, I was still working on the last of the rigging when I felt myself go airborne. I hit the shore with a thump, Sora running after the boat that had started heading away. Sitting up I rubbed the back of my head with a grimace, stopping Twilight from casting Cure on me and standing up with a grunt. My eyes widened.

"Duck!" I yelled.

I shoved Donald down by the back of the head as Pete threw garbage at the two of us. It sailed harmlessly over our heads. Quickly I scrambled back to my feet. When Donald didn't get up right away I grabbed him by the back of his shirt and pulled him to his webbed feet. Sora ran behind us and sent it back. It hit Pete in the stomach. I smirked as I turned to Sora.

"Just keep sending it back. I got most of the rigging off if we jostle it enough it'll come loose or the cage will break which ever happens to come first." I told Sora.

The brunet nodded concentrating on the boat and the flying garbage, sending each piece back at its owner. It didn't take long before the cage broke and the rigging actually did come partly loose. I tilted my head looking at it making sure that it wouldn't come loose anymore. Turning I saw Sora and the others taking off after Pete who had run off, Twilight looked back towards me as I caught up. As we caught up to the boys we looked at them as they stared at the scene confused as it was a Pete vs. Pets boxing match. We dodged as 'past' Pete fell down almost landing on the group. I rolled my eyes as he sat up almost crying, running forward with the others.

"Ha! You're still wet behind the ears!" 'future' Pete said

I twirled my sword in my hand. I decided to make a show of myself by tossing my blade up and into the air. I caught it once more with my opposite hand before tossing it to my strong hand and stared at him with a dark smirk on my lips. We were the better fighters… This was going to be fun, for me at least. I always felt satisfaction when kicking the crud out of the villains in Kingdom Hearts, except for Sephiroth. His power and strength was something to be admired, at least before he goes completely insane, tries to take over the world, spears Aerith through the chest and did I mention he tried to take over the world?

"Then try us!" Sora cried.

'Past' Pete charged past us knocking Goofy and Donald down and pushing me into Sora as he went after his future self. Sora steadied me so I wouldn't completely fall over. I nodded my thanks and he nodded back, telling me it was okay. I glared at 'past' Pete who had gone into some melee mode and was beating the tar out of his future self. I looked back at Sora. He was watching the past beat on the future Pete. It didn't make sense to him, nor did it really make any sense to me. It seemed we were finally on the same page for once since every other thing I've seen with time travel when the past self met the future self all of time was destroyed or ruined, or the future self stopped existing entirely. In other words, it was never a good thing.

"Keep an eye on that one during the fight; you don't want to get trampled." I told Sora.

He nodded and Twilight moved next to me, we smiled and nodded running up to the fight. As the fight continued we moved through the different stages, adjusting strategy to fit the scenario. It didn't take long before we were back in the wharf, 'future' Pete sitting on the ground while 'past' Pete mockingly placed his hands on his hips.

"It serves ya right!" Past Pete scolded.

Standing up 'future' Pete huffed and ran a few feet away. He stopped, once he thought he was a good distance away from us, to hold out his arms and making the door appear in a poof of smoke. It landed on the ground with a thud. 'Future' Pete looked at us, warily, as if he expected us to attack him from behind as he was making a 'tactical regrouping' aka retreat. _'Heh, coward!'_ I inwardly cried. And he was one. He'd make the cowardly lion seem like Superman or something

"The door!" Donald yelled

'Future' Pete opened the door and ran out with his past self shaking a fist after him. It was a rather comical sight. I really do hope Pete remembers that his past self beat the living tar out of him. It would be so embarrassing for him. I'd have to be sure to remember it so I could tease him for it later. Nothing like taunting a villain while out on a job. Too bad he wasn't stronger or else it might have been more fun to beat him.

"Yeah… And stay out!" 'Past' Pete yelled.

Donald saw that Sora wasn't doing anything at the moment. The taller brunet just staring at the door that Pete had gone through. Donald gave a huffy sigh which made the boy looked down at the duck with a look of surprise on his face, as if he had been pulled out of a trance or something. But I do wonder what Sora was thinking about so deeply. He seemed lost in his thoughts until Donald rudely pulled him out of them.

"Sora!" Donald snapped.

"Yeah, I know!" Sora said, slightly exasperated.

He clenched his fist and ran towards the door stopping about a foot away. As he held out his Keyblade a beam of light shot out of it, locking the door with an audible click. We watched as the door disappeared in a flash of light leaving nothing but empty space. I glanced up at 'past' Pete as he began venting his anger once more. Perhaps I should make suggestions for anger therapy. But then I remembered that he was going to become a villain so he needed to have some sort of flaw to give us an edge.

"Would somebody, tell me what's been goin' on here? Who was that creep, anyways?" 'Past' Pete yelled.

"Hello? That creep…" Sora answered sarcastically.

His voice became muffled as Goofy, Twilight, and I covered his mouth not allowing what he was saying to get through to Pete. Pete was not to know he became a villain who was an even bigger jerk than he was now. It might alter the time line and really mess up the space time continuum. I really didn't want to test our luck with that. End of the world and all that wasn't really what I wanted to deal with.

"Sora, that's a secret!" Goofy said desperately.

I blinked and tried to remove my hands from the now suffocating boy but couldn't as Twilight's hands were clamped over mine, my own were keeping Goofy's in place. I raised an eyebrow at the girl with a slight smirk and she removed her hands form my own with a smile and I pulled my hands away. I wiped them on my pants leg, seeing they were covered in dirt and sweat from myself and the others.

"Secret? What kinda secret?" Pete asked interested, "Oh, never mind."

Sora glared at the three of us once Goofy had removed his hands from his mouth. I grinned in response to the glare. He shook his head and placed his hands behind his head turning his attention back to Pete. Sora never was one to truly hold a grudge against someone. It was good to know he wasn't going to hold this against me. And by now I guess I could say we were almost friends, except we really didn't know all that much about each other.

"Sorry I put you guys through all that trouble." Pete said.

"Yeah, well, just don't make a habit out of it!" Donald retorted.

Sora, Goofy, Twilight, and I snickered as Donald said that. If only Pete could follow that advice, alas that was a pipe dream. It was never meant to be since something would happen and Pete would go bad in the end. Pete looked away for a moment. He looked highly ashamed of himself but then he looked back at us with a slight smile on his lips, as if he had the perfect thing to do to make us feel better.

"And to show ya my appreciation, I'll let you pilot my steamboat." Pete declared, "Best little craft on the river! My deck hand Mickey's late anyways."

I smiled as the boys jumped at the chance. We headed back to the steamboat and I reattached the rigging to the Cornerstone before heading up to the cabin. I leaned against the wall of the cabin. Twilight suddenly leaned up against the wall with me, mimicking my posture, with her arms crossed in front of her chest, her head tilted down ever so slightly, her legs crossed at the ankles – right over the left and a smirk on her lips.

"You seem to be getting better." Twilight said.

I smiled and shook my head. I winced but she didn't notice. I didn't say anything. I didn't want to appear weak in her eyes since she always came to me to help her with her problems. If she saw that I was having a weak moment she wouldn't come to me anymore because she wouldn't want to burden me with her problems. The Cornerstone was the hardest thing I have ever been around. It felt like I was being torn apart from the inside and I wanted so desperately to get away from the darned thing.

"Nope. Just getting better at ignoring it, I won't be vacationing here or Disney Castle anytime soon though." I said.

She chuckled and reached up pulling the string that was attached to the horns. I closed my eyes, happy to be back on the water, but opened them quickly as Sora pulled us up to the dock with a slight bump. I sighed and jumped down to the deck below and worked the rigging so that the Cornerstone went ashore. Donald, Goofy, Sora, and Twilight grabbed it and started rolling it back to the pedestals. I followed behind, standing back as they placed it in its original position. Sora stepped back, wiping his brow.

"Whew." Sora sighed.

"I betcha the castle's safe now." Goofy said.

Goofy smiled. Sora looked over at him. I shook my head. _'After all we did it better be safe or I might just go on a killing spree. Maleficent would be number one on my hit list.'_ I thought darkly, _'Heartless beware of a Ghost gone mad…'_ I smiled to myself as I thought of how I would kill the Heartless to vent. Twilight knew I could get scary when I was mad. She had seen it before. Axel and Demyx almost saw me get really mad. Yet, no one had seen me truly lose my temper in over ten years…it was a point of pride for me with just how much control I had over that particularly dark emotion.

"Guess we should head back." Sora said.

"Wait! As long as we're here…" Donald said conspiratorially.

"Donald!" Goofy and Sora cried in disbelief.

Twilight and I laughed. He looked between them quickly waving his hands. Sora and Goofy grabbed one arm a piece and dragged him back to the door. Twilight and I ran in front of them opening both doors and bowing as they tossed the protesting duck in before heading in them, Twilight and me following behind them. We walked out of the door, I blinked and squinted readjusting to the fact that everything was in color again. We looked away from Donald, who was lying on the floor.

"Welcome back! Because of your bravery, the castle is safe and protected again. Thank you so much for all you've done!" Queen Minnie said.

"Good work, you guys!" Chip and Dale said excitedly.

I glanced down at the two chipmunks. They were jumping up and down again. _'Where do they get the energy from? Do they only eat coffee beans or something?'_ I asked myself, but then again I wasn't really sure I wanted to know the answer to that. They were almost as bad as Twilight could be sometimes. Merlin held up a finger, drawing our attention towards him.

"N-Now, I hope you didn't do anything reckless while you were there?" Merlin asked.

Donald pounded a fist on his chest. There was a proud smile across his lips. I shook my head. I'm pretty sure that Merlin caught my gesture. He gave me a knowing smile of which I returned. He wasn't as easily fooled as Donald thought. Smart wizard, but I guess that was just something that came with age, or perhaps he just knew Donald too well.

"Of course not!" Donald said.

Twilight and the two boys snickered as I rolled my eyes with an amused smile. The duck glanced over at the door to spot someone peeking around the doorway. He didn't do anything to make it easy. He was the one who suggested that we do something to alter time. _'Shame, shame, Donald.'_ I reprimanded in my mind. We'd be sure to tease him for it later, when the Queen and Merlin weren't around.

"Daisy!" Donald shouted in excitement.

The two ducks walked towards each other. Donald was smiling so much I thought his duck bill was going to crack in half. The other duck seemed a little surprised to see Donald but she was nevertheless happy. It was kind of cute once you thought about it that was if you didn't know what was going to happen next. Then it was just going to be really, really funny since it was leading into a slight chase scene.

"Daisy, I'm back!" He told her.

Sora stared at him confused. I nodded in realization. He didn't know who Daisy was. Donald had never really gone into the description of his love life like Sora had in the game, unless, Sora didn't like Kairi that way. In that case many fangirls would be unhappy while others would be pleased. Ah, fangirls, they scare me so. Pairing wars and such get so out of hand it's like a battlefield and no one's winning so long as there is one soul who supports one pairing.

"Who?" Sora asked.

"Daisy is Donald's very special sweetheart." Goofy explained to us with a smile.

"Really…" Sora said teasingly.

Sora placed his hands behind his head. He now had blackmail information since Donald was always teasing him relentlessly about Kairi. And the fighting between the two of them would never cease. I guess it was just their way of showing how much they cared for one another. Twilight and I smiled as Daisy turned on Donald angrily berating the other duck

"Donald, you forgot about our date again! You'd better have a good excuse this time!" Daisy scolded.

I tilted my head curiously. '_Why doesn't she have the funky voice? Donald's got it, even Daffy Duck's got it' (A/N: I don't own any loony tunes either as much as I love them) _I asked myself. Mickey had an odd voice, Pete's voice was just annoying, Goofy's accent was just plain funny but you got used to those. But Donald's voice, I guess I'd never get used to that.

"But Daisy...I…" Donald tried to explain.

Donald edging away from her headed towards us. He wanted us to back him up, to shield him from the angry wrath of his girlfriend. It was so not happening. I knew better to get into a fight like that, even Sora knew better. The Underworld hath no fury as that of an angry woman, or in this case, a duck. I wasn't going to be the one to put my neck on the line to save Donald. As much as I liked him and all he was on his own.

"I know it's an important mission, but you could at least check in every once in a while." Daisy said a little hurt.

The duck looked back at us seeking help. Sora just placed his hands behind his head and looked away. I raised both eyebrows at him questioningly, as if asking the duck what I should do. Twilight glanced over at me for a moment before shrugging at him. She wasn't going to jump in anytime soon. He was so toast. I guess it was nice knowing him. I smiled, knowing he'd be okay by the end of all of this and we'd move on to the next world rather easily.

"Sora!" Donald pleaded.

Seeing as he wasn't getting any help from the boy he looked over at the door and snickered evilly. I stepped in front of the door, knowing full well he wasn't going to make it there before Daisy gave him the chase but I decided to make it more fun to see him squirm a bit while trying to make an escape to alter whatever went wrong. Merlin noticed the duck's intent.

"Donald!" Merlin said warningly.

"Just be a minute…" Donald said.

He bowed towards the wizard and Queen. I shrugged. At least he had the decency to bow to them. It showed he wasn't a completely lost cause, right? He started running towards the door but Daisy caught him by the tail feathers. I winced. For a duck the tail feathers had to be as bad as someone pulling on your hair. They weren't like clothes since they were very much attached and it would hurt to pull one out.

"Going somewhere?" Daisy asked.

"Of course not!" He told her.

He shook himself out of her grasp and took off running. Daisy chased after him. The two of them ran laps around all of us. We didn't do anything to stop it. It was a lovers' quarrel and those were the worse to get involved with. We wanted nothing apart of the drama and angst that came from that. No thanks. I watched and wondered how Mickey ever got any work done with Donald around or was he actually silent when the king worked? The idea was laughable.

"Donald!" Daisy cried indigently.

He paused for a moment but started running again as she started to chase after him making everyone in the room laugh. I blinked as the room began to blur the power of light finally catching up to me. Swaying I held a hand out and grasped onto Twilight's arm. She looked down at me as I slumped forward slightly.

'_Stay awake Ghost. Focus on something; don't…pass…ou…' _


	16. Depression and Singing

Hey everyone. Hope you all had a good holiday. Well here's the next chapter. Shout outs: SpringBorn, twilight-yuna17, Insanity-Red, The Grim Reeper, YoruNoAi, Tori-SG-Custom, Nobody-XV, Surbette, kitten-ears11, Whisperinmyear23, Lunarex the 15th member, NotxYetxDead, and a gigiantic shout out to my beta Kita-san. :D Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I still don't own KH2 or anything, though I can dream can't I?

* * *

**Chapter 16: Depression and singing**

Darkness surrounded me and I felt relief as I could no longer feel the burning sensation of the Cornerstone's presence. I opened my eyes slowly, squinting as light flooded into my blue orbs. My brow wrinkled in confusion as I sat up in the bed. Looking around I pushed the dark blue covers off of me and swung my legs off the bed. I could tell I was still in Disney Castle as I could feel the Cornerstone on the edge of my perception.

I glanced around and found my boots pulling them on and tying them as I wondered where the others were. I got up and grabbed my coat that was hanging by the door, feeling in the pocket and pulling out my sunglasses. I opened the door, sliding out into the hallway as I slid the glasses on, shielding my eyes with the tinted glass. Glancing around, I saw that there was nobody in the hallways. Narrowing my eyes I focused on the Cornerstone and followed the sensation that I got from it.

It didn't take long before I was hopelessly lost in the twist and turns of the castle. I sighed in frustration and placed a hand on my hip, shaking my head before back tracking slightly and going down another hallway that led to a stairwell. As I rounded the corner I smiled with ease. This was starting to look familiar once more.

"Woot!" I cried.

For I had found the evil hallway that no longer had a Heartless problem and headed into the library to see Twilight there, sitting at one of the tables a book held up to her nose. Moving as quietly as I could I walked around the room. She hadn't even noticed that I had slipped in. I grinned as I snuck up on my friend, relishing the feeling of excitement that bubbled up inside of my chest as I drew closer and closer.

"Sephiroth." I whispered.

She screamed in a very girlish way and threw the book back at me which I dodged laughing hysterically. She glared at me, attempting to make me feel bad with a pout and a hurt yet angry look in her eyes. It didn't work. The effects of her pouts and the sting of her glares no longer reached my heart since I knew that she didn't really mean them, although they were rather convincing. Perhaps after all this was over she could become an actress.

"Ghost! Why'd you do that?! You nearly gave me a heart attack!" She screamed

"You… you…" I gasped out.

I stopped trying to talk and laughed again as the boys burst into the room, weapons out. We blinked. We looked rather innocent in my eyes since we were sitting in an empty room and there was no one there but us. I started laughing again. The looks on their faces were just beyond priceless so it wasn't really my fault. They stared at us, well me mostly, confused.

"What in the world happened?" Sora asked.

"She scared the living daylights out of me!" Twilight tattled.

I took in a deep calming breath. It didn't erase the smile across my lips or the radiant joy that made my skin tingle. This was just too much fun. Without these guys to tease I'd be very bored, perhaps I'd even join the Organization since they seem to be so desperate for help as of late, especially since Sora and Riku wacked about half of their numbers.

"You were the one who came up with the idea ya' know." I countered.

She whipped around with a dark look on her face. I backed up as she wagged her finger in my face, scolding me with the other hand on her hip. She looked very much like a mother hen. I wasn't truly afraid of her and she knew this. She was just treating me how I would have done her, without the overbearing motherly attitude, if she were the one to initiate the prank. However, she rarely could catch me off guard for that.

"That's beside the point!" She snapped.

I smiled and turned to look at the Queen who had just entered into the room. She looked up at me with surprise in her eyes but she smiled nonetheless. I assumed she missed me while I was out. I sheepishly rubbed the back of my neck once I realized the scare I must have given everyone, simply passing out the way I did. It's not something that normally happens…ever. I knew Axel would have laughed at me, after giving me a bit of a lecture, that I would've rolled my eyes at. Demyx would have been hovering over me the entire time, wringing his hands, quite unsure of what to do.

"I'm glad to see you're up, Ghost." Minnie said, "You've been unconscious nearly a day."

My eyes narrowed and I blinked. I scanned the room for a clock but couldn't find one. I did however find that Twilight had been reading more. Her pile now almost encompassed most of the table and I was thoroughly impressed. She must really want to find out how to give back a heart to those who had lost one.

"What time is it?" I asked.

Sora placed his hands behind his head. He gave me a smug smile and I could just tell he was waiting for me to flip out once he gave me my answer. I braced myself for some sort of ungodly hour, like three in the morning or even worse, two. However, I doubted that Sora would have reacted as quickly as he did to Twilight's scream if it had been two or three. I doubted he'd even be semi-conscious at that time.

"Seven am." Sora replied.

I raised an eyebrow at him. His head quirked a little to the side and he looked at me, slightly confused. I allowed myself a victorious smirk as I faked an expression of complete and utter surprise. I gave wide gestures of my hand and leaned towards him, bringing his attention a little more focused on me. Twilight sniggered once she figured out what I was doing.

"And you're up? I'm impressed!" I teased.

"Hey!" He yelled indigently

That had popped Sora's bubble. He would have fallen over had he not caught himself. His hands were no longer behind his head but at his sides instead, swinging out as his hands clenched into fists. I ignored him and looked back over at Twilight who had recovered from her fright. She smiled over at me, shaking her head the entire time. She knew I was back to normal now that I was teasing Sora once more.

"Ready to go?" Twilight asked.

I nodded and looked over at Sora. He was pouting at me and trying to make me feel bad for teasing him. It didn't work, although I had to give him credit. His puppy dog pout was very convincing but if it didn't work for Twilight it wouldn't work for him. I also had to give him points for still trying to make me feel bad though he should have learned by now it didn't exactly work.

"Where're we headed next?" I asked.

He grinned, happy that he knew something that I didn't.

"Atlantica." He replied.

I nodded, that sounded about right in the timeline. I didn't hate Atlantica but I didn't exactly care for it either. It was just one of those side quests that you had to get done in order to see the minute and a half bonus scenes at the end of the game. It meant that Jack's world was next, and then we could choose Halloween Town or Agrabah. The Pride Lands would be after that and I could just tell that was going to be interesting, especially with for legs and all. Right about that time Axel should kidnap Kairi from Destiny Islands…

Now that I was musing I realized we didn't have that much time left. We were almost to Demyx's death. We had to do something to convince Sora Demyx was a good guy or figure out a way to save the blond Nobody. With Sora that was going to be next than impossible. He sees everything in black and white. There were no shades of grey in his standpoint of things and Demyx was most definitely grey. Perhaps, I should compare Demyx to Riku. Sora might understand then but…that would be cruel and there was no way I could actually be cruel to Sora. It just didn't work.

"Then shouldn't we be going?" I asked.

They nodded and started heading towards the gummi hanger as I looked back over at Twilight. I didn't know how she would fair if Demyx were gone. They had become fast friends, and perhaps something more. I didn't exactly know but I wouldn't want to mention my morbid thinking to her so I kept my mouth shut. I waited until the Queen was out of the room and we were the only ones left before asking

"What's up?" I asked.

"Nothing." She murmured.

I gave her an 'oh come on' look. She sheepishly tried to avoid my eyes, which was completely useless and we both knew it. I didn't have to look at her eyes to know she was hiding something. I knew her better than anyone else in this multi-verse so I didn't know why she was trying to hide something from me. I knew her quirks, her every move, her voice and I could probably write and embarrassing memoir about her life or at least a really fat book about the little over a year that we had known each other.

"Twilight. You're not that good at lying," I said, "I can tell something's wrong."

She looked down but didn't say anything. I raised an eyebrow at her. She glanced up as I remained silent staring at her. She rubbed her other arm. She looked up at me with raw hurt shining in her eyes and I wanted to cringe back. I didn't know what brought on this emotion but I wanted to get to the bottom of it and help her.

"I…just… I'm useless around here." She admitted.

My eyes widened in shock as I realized what she meant. She felt she was nothing but a burden and an extra wheel. I shook my head in disagreement. I could easily say that I was upset that she would even believe such a thing about herself. She was a great fighter and she was learning on the fly. She was doing great and hadn't gotten hurt too badly, though it was just one of the midway points of the game.

"It's just that you have all these powers and the others are so good at fighting. I'm just…I don't have powers and I'm not good at fighting…" She hurried on quickly

"You should really have more confidence in yourself." I said before she could say much else.

I sighed and scratched the back of my head

"You aren't useless and you're getting better at fighting. Yea sure my powers have been growing but that doesn't mean much when you haven't even started unlocking them. The way I figure it the only reason I'm unlocking them faster is because I fight, mostly on instinct. You're a lover not a fighter and I've been a fighter for a long time. So…just give it some time, it'll come to you eventually. Ok?"

She nodded still looking at the ground. I watched her for a little longer. '_Oh Twilight.'_ I thought painfully. My heart ached for her. I wished there was something I could do to prove she wasn't as useless as she felt. I gave a small smirk as I came up with an idea that would make her smile, as well as myself.

"You do realize that without you around I would've strangled Sora by now through sheer frustration." I said.

She snorted and looked up at me with a small smile. When in doubt, bring out your own faults and let your friends laugh at them. My fault was my temper and my patience, both of which Twilight had more of; I had never had patience for melodramatics. My gaze softened and I jerked my head towards the door. She got to her feet as I pushed her towards the door.

"C'mon, I think Atlantica will do you a lot of good." I told her.

"Woot!" She cried.

Twilight ran out the door with me following smiling and shaking my head. I sped up and ran next to her as we headed into the garden. I shook my head at her and slowed down to a walk as we entered the gummi hanger. We walked down the stairs with smiles on our faces. I had to admit I was excited to see what I'd look like in Atlantica. Never before had we seen a girl's transformation there. I realized we wouldn't see Axel there since, well, water… Duh…

"Hey Donald, how long is the trip to Atlantica?" I asked.

"About 12 hours." He responded.

"What?! 12 hours!" Twilight cried.

I winced since she had yelled in my ear. I rubbed my ear trying to get the ringing to stop. I smirked slightly before heading over to the gummi ship and boarding. Sitting down I waited until the others came on, Donald and Twilight arguing about something or other. I propped my head on my hand waiting to be launched. I blinked as there was a rumble and the ship's engines started up.

"Let's go!" Donald yelled.

Donald pointed forward showing that was the direction he wanted to go. Instead of going forward we dropped straight down. I started laughing and voiced my delight with a round of 'Whoo!' I laughed as the others tried to gather themselves from the shock of the sudden fall. Twilight looked quite ruffled as she looked up at me in alarm.

"How could you have enjoyed that?!" She cried.

"I'm a roller coaster fanatic," I reminded her, "I love airtime. It's such a rush!"

I turned in my seat laughing slightly She shook her head and sat back down in her chair. Pressing a button she made a table pop up between us and the deck of cards reappeared on the table. I turned in my seat to face her with a dark smile on my face. She caught sight of it and smiled herself, knowing that a challenge was going to ensue.

"Why don't we make this a bit more interesting? Whoever loses has to sing whatever is playing on the radio at that moment." I suggested.

Twilight grinned and nodded enthusiastically.

* * *

I stretched my arms above my head, looking out the window as the gummi ship hovered over an ocean. I grinned over at Twilight, slugged half of a potion with a grimace before tossing over the rest of the potion to her. I had to fight back a shiver that wanted to run down my spine.

"Drink up." I told her.

She grimaced and stared at the bottle in her hand before taking it down like a shot. She couldn't hold her grimace or her shiver as she looked at me with an empty bottle. Wouldn't our parents be so proud of us to know that we were using potions as a substitute alcohol? At least we weren't truly drinking. Next we were going to have to start snorting smarties instead of using crack or marijuana or something, just to make them squirm – even if they'd never know. Twilight sighed.

"Well who won?" She asked.

I blinked for a moment. I grimaced when I realize I didn't keep tabs on who won or not. I didn't even know how to tell which one of us was the winner. Oh well, it wasn't a complete loss. But next time I made a mental not to have someone like Donald or Goofy play referee or something, although there would be nothing to make sure we did to make it a fair game.

"I think we should call it a draw." I admitted.

She smiled and nodded before standing up and moving over to stand next to the door. Sora, Donald and Goofy were hovering over the controls. They were smiling, as if happy about some sort of memory that only the three of them shared. Perhaps old memories of the watery city of Atlantica made them smile. I didn't know. I'm not a mind reader! Looking over at the boys, Twilight smiled as well.

"So, how're we going to get down there?" Twilight asked.

Sora grinned and pressed a button and we were surrounded by a whirl of magic that shot us out into the water below. I panicked for a moment before looking down at myself as I found that I could breathe. I had an orange-red mermaid tail and a fabric like shirt with a v-neck and that went down to my waist. My silver bracelet was still on my left wrist and my yin yang necklace was there but that was all that I had kept of my original outfit. I waved my tail propelling myself forward easily. I grinned happy to be in the water again.

Looking around I spotted Twilight. She had a light blue tail with two strands of pearls near the fin. She had a sea shell bikini that was the same light blue as her tail and a light blue armband. She still had her silver music note necklace but like myself had lost the rest of her outfit with the change. I swam over to her as she floundered slightly, though quickly getting the hang of it. Swimming up next to her I smiled and looked over to the boys. Goofy had changed into a turtle and Donald was an octopus. Sora was a merman/boy. A dark blue sharks tail attached to him. Donald swam around us, completely giddy.

"Oh boy! Under the sea again!" He said excitedly.

Goofy agreed as Sora floundered. Twilight and I both looked at the boy for a moment before Twilight sped off with me chasing her around the underwater courtyard in an impromptu race. We both stopped short as a crab, a fish, and another mermaid swam in. All three of them stopped and started, like fish out of water. Forgive me for the pun. It was totally unintentional.

"Sora! Donald! Goofy!" The mermaid said happily

Twilight and I swam over to the boys and watched as the newcomers swam over to us. The red headed mermaid swam around Sora. Sora could only watch in envy since she was so graceful and fluid in her movements and motions. I smirked while Twilight hid her smile behind her hand. Poor Sora, couldn't catch a break with everyone constantly teasing him.

"You forget how to swim already?" She asked teasingly.

Sora shrugged and smiled sheepishly as the mermaid smiled at him. It seemed like I was intruding on a close moment between friends. I looked away, finding more interest in the coral reef around us but watched them out of the corner of my eyes. I shook my head and smirked at my own actions. I was acting like some flustered child, caught with their hand in the cookie jar, even though she was told she could already have a cookie. It was more fun to take the cookie without permission since there was the thrill of being caught. Yeah, my morals are kind of warped I'll be the first to admit it. Twilight, knew very well that I was good with a twist and lack about rules that weren't my own.

"Kinda, I guess." He answered.

The mermaid's eyes widened when she caught sight of Twilight and I. I gave her a sort of half smile and a small two fingered salute. Twilight smiled full heartedly and waved at her with a little more vigor than my salute. The mermaid just stared at us. She wasn't quite sure what to make of us. Not a lot of people did when they saw the two of us. They probably just supposed that Sora adopted stray warriors from other planets and rushed off, fighting Heartless. What a laugh…if only they knew.

"Oh! Who are your friends?" She asked.

"That one's Twilight and she's Ghost." Sora introduced.

Donald and Goofy swam over to our sides and smiled up at us, as if to show us off like some sort of trophy but instead of voicing my opinion of the matter I bit my tongue and raised an eyebrow at the two of them. Twilight merely giggled at all of the attention she was getting. I smiled in return. Twilight and I waved at the other girl. She smiled at us, taking my hand and shaking it. She then did the same for Twilight.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, my name's Ariel. This is Flounder and Sebastian." She announced.

I smiled and nodded before raising an eyebrow over at Twilight who nodded and we started exploring the courtyard. I looked up to see Sora swimming over to Flounder but continued swimming around for a little bit. I nudged Twilight and pointed over to where the others were. I swam over to the crab just in time to hear him talking to Sora.

"Now den… What brings you five into de sea? Is somethin' going on?" Sebastian asked.

"Kind of." Sora said.

"But everything _seems_ peaceful." Goofy mused.

And all did seem peaceful. There wasn't a single Heartless or Nobody around for as far as the eye could see. Nor would there be anymore here ever again, or at least in this game that was. I wasn't so sure about the new game Birth by Sleep since I never did get to play it. It was such a shame too. I really did want to play it. Though I had drooled over the online scans of the game…hey, I'm a gamer too don't judge.

"Oh, everything's fine…as long as Daddy's in a good mood." Ariel agreed.

"Hey, we got us a concert very soon." Sebastian suggested, "Why don't you sing in my musical extravaganza?"

Sebastian seemed to sense the sudden change in mood so he stood by his suggestion. I winced at the fact that he wanted us to sing. Not that I disliked singing, I had been in a choir at one point in time, it was just he was kind of forcing us into the subject. We really did have no choice in the matter since Sora was going to say yes anyways. The crab swam up closer to Sora.

"Please say yes! Ariel's been actin' strange lately. But she might settle down and practice if you're dere, too." The crab explained.

"That sounds fun!" Donald proclaimed.

"Let's give it a shot!" Sora agreed.

I shook my head. Where was Demyx when you needed him? I would have died to have seen him singing some of these songs with us but seeing him as a merman would be even more memorable. Twilight would have sold her heart if she could to see him doing just about anything. If only Axel could have come. But I wasn't expecting him to. There was too much water for him, just like how Disney Castle had too much light for me.

"Excellent! Now den, I teach you everything you need." Sebastian said.

"Er, what do we have to do?" Sora asked

He now looked down at the crab apprehensively. He was afraid of what he had gotten himself into. Sebastian held up a claw and waved it dismissively. He was acting as if singing was easy but I knew choir kids who begged to differ. For some it came naturally but for others… Well, not so much. Those were the people that host from American Idol booted off and constantly bashed. Simon was his name, I do believe…

"It's easy!" Sebastian said.

And so I was back to the assumption that he believed Sora could sing. He was just lucky Sora didn't suck or else his musical would have tanked. The crab swam away slightly and got the music ready. When he turned around to face us Sora flashed me and Twilight a look of pure nervousness. I guess even the hero gets nervous sometimes. We both gave the boy small smiles of encouragement.

"All you gotta do is feel de rhythm! Hear de beat and put a little shake in it! Ready? Let's go!"

Twilight and I laughed as Sora finished with a gigantic smile on his face. He looked like a child, very much proud of all of his accomplishments. He looked at us and flashed us a thumbs up, showing that he believed he did a good job. I agreed, for someone who was remembering how to swim he did a really good job.

"Dat's it! Okay, Donald. Your turn," Sebastian said, "You do just like Sora. Den he see what you got."

We watched as Donald and then Goofy danced before Sebastian turned to us and had us do the same thing; much to my grudging amusement, I was never one for dancing. I shook my head, listening to our voices intertwine. Donald's was slightly annoying but not as bad as some people make it out to be. He just had that annoying, slightly raspy sound to his voice. Most fangirls complain and complain about how terrible he sings and say they usually put him on mute or something like that… Looks like Twilight and I have a higher endurance level than they do.

"Dat's it! Dis time you gonna dance with Ariel! Remember, don't miss de beat!" Sebastian said.

I laughed as Sora and Ariel danced together before swimming over to Sebastian with the rest of the group. I looked over to Ariel. She looked pretty happy to have someone with her and singing along as she did. I wondered if she had any merfriends or if she was only friends with fish since those were all the friends I had seen around her. Not that there is anything wrong with fish. It's just that most people eat fish.

"Dat's all dere is to it." The crab proclaimed.

"Gawrsh, I don't know…" Goofy said nervously.

"Any time you wanna sing in a music masterpiece…you just come see me." Sebastian insisted.

We swam off a little ways and Twilight started to try and convince Goofy that it would be fun to sing in the musical. It didn't take long for the girl to wear the boys down and convince them. Sora swam back over to Sebastian and told him that we wanted to sing in the musical. He waved us over to follow him and we swam to the stage that he was using. We waited in front of the conductor's stand for a moment.

"Break a fin!" The crab said.

"Here goes nothing." Sora murmured.

Sora wasn't that bad at singing. If I had to guess, though, he wouldn't be able to sing very low parts. His voice was something like a tenor instead of a bass. Twilight sang along with Ariel and the two danced throughout their duet of second soprano and soprano respectively. I preferred to stay back, singing only as I had to and only when cued by Sebastian. He seemed to notice my reluctance in my songs. But I had other things on my mind. I would look up during the songs to see a merman watching us. It wasn't until I got a little closer that I had noticed he had a mullet.

I smiled and nodded to where he was hiding. He was watching us but his eyes were mainly on Twilight. I held my tongue, deciding to let him surprise Twilight, although I'm pretty sure she was expecting him to come. I was undoubting in my suspicion that she was counting on him to come. After the song finished she was flush from excitement and giddy with joy. I knew Atlantica was going to do her some good.

"Sora, you were amazing!" Ariel cried in amazement.

"Hey! I wanna sing more lines!" Donald complained.

Donald swam up behind her making Ariel turn towards the duck as he voiced his complaints in the matter of the song. She giggled at the duck while I laughed outright. I noticed out of the corner of my eye that her smile faded and I turned as she swam away. Looking around I saw an older merman with a trident swimming towards us. I glanced over at Ariel.

"Your Majesty! We have visitors!" Sebastian cried.

"King Triton." Sora cordially greeted the older man.

The King's eye narrowed in suspicion as he looked at Sora. I shifted my fin a little nervously. It was obvious from the look that we were getting that the King wasn't too happy about finding us here. I understood what he was thinking. Where ever Sora went Heartless were to follow. But most people were grateful for the help Sora provided and they even went as far as befriending him instead of treating him like scum, which I knew the King thought he was.

"I certainly hope there hasn't been a need to use that Keyblade of yours." Triton said.

Sora smiled, despite the look he was getting and shook his head. I didn't know how he did it. He just brushed it aside as if it were nothing. But I wanted to cry out for Sora to not roll over and take this sort of treatment. Though, Triton may be a King, he had no right to treat Sora the way he was treating him now.

"Nope. Everything's fine. Not a Heartless in sight." Sora replied.

"Your Majesty, our guests, dey wanna sing in de musical." Sebastian said.

The crab swam over to the king with a smile on his face. The king looked at Sebastian for a moment before turning towards us again. He gave Twilight and I suspicious looks. Not that I blamed him, I was giving him a decidedly cold, appraising look. He didn't really know who we are and we had seen he didn't take too kindly to strangers to his lands. But I knew what he was going to ask next.

"Well, that sounds like a splendid idea. We may need your help after all…" Triton said, "You see, I'm afraid Ariel's still infatuated with the human world. A busy rehearsal schedule might be just the thing she needs to stop thinking about life up on the surface."

He had the audacity to go and dare to ask Sora for a favor, one which Sora would grant – at least to the best of his abilities. We turned to look at the girl who was floating about twenty feet away from us. Sora nodded back at the king and watched as the bearded man swam away back to the palace. Twilight and I followed the other girl as she swam back to the courtyard. Swimming up to her Twilight and I both smiled at her as we all ignored Sebastian. She gave us a small smile in return. Sora was harder to ignore as he swam right up to the red head.

"C'mon, we gotta keep rehearsing!" Sora cheered.

"I'm sorry, but I don't feel like it." Ariel said.

She hesitated for a moment before swimming off with all of us watching her. It was obvious from the tone of her voice and the dejected slump of her shoulders that she was now depressed. I grimaced as I looked at the sad mermaid. I couldn't imagine what it was like to have a father as overbearing as King Triton. If you defied him you faced the wrath of the entire seven seas. It was something I didn't think that I would be able to bear. Ariel was stronger than she looked.

"No! Ariel!" Sebastian protested.

I blinked as Flounder swam up to us. He was practically torn between coming to us and going to Ariel to comfort her. He forced a pained smile as he looked at us but he still looked pretty happy as he swam over to us. I smiled and sent a look over to Twilight. She was smiling out of anticipation of what was to come. The sooner we got done, perhaps the sooner Demyx could come out of hiding and surprise her.

"I've got an idea, Sebastian." Flounder said.

"You do?" Sebastian asked.

I raised an eyebrow at Sebastian's amazement. Flounder was Ariel's best friend. The small blue and yellow fish should know her better than anyone else. It shouldn't have been that surprising of a fact. Friends knew each other, inside and out. It was like how I knew Twilight and Sora knew Riku and Kairi, down to their darkest of secrets and most embarrassing of memories. The fish nodded and took off swimming.

"I know how to cheer Ariel up! C'mon, follow me!" Flounder said.

We all looked at each other and shrugged before following the yellow and blue fish. It's not like we had anything better to do, besides, Ariel needed cheering up. I was willing to follow through with Flounder's plan. It didn't take long before we had reached a shipwreck. From the looks of it, the ship had been destroyed in a storm, a very fierce one if any storm at all.

"Over here! See…" Flounder called

Sebastian swam up to a statue that had fallen out of the ship. There was a look of utter horror as he looked at it. He was treating it as if it were some poison that would taint the waters and kill us all, either that or it would spring to life and kill us. I smiled at the likelihood of that happening. It might have happened on other worlds but this world was very safe. The only battle we would have here would be with Ursula and could that really be counted as a battle.

"Oh, no! Dis must be from de human world!" Sebastian cried in alarm.

I rolled my eyes as I looked at the crab in disbelief. I shook my head but said nothing. '_No it's from the Underworld; duh it's from the human world that's why there's a sunken ship right by it.' _I didn't know anywhere else that would have a statue of some princely figure. None of the other worlds around us had the means nor any princes of which the statue could be a look-alike all started swimming towards it.

"I found it after that storm—and I bet it's from a shipwreck. Don't ya think Ariel's gonna love it?" Flounder said.

Sebastian frowned even deeper, as we stopped by him in front of the statue. It was a nice statue, I had to admit. Whoever made it had obviously put a lot of time into it. Such a shame it would never see the surface, to see the light of day from above water and away from the eyes of men. It sort of reminded me of the ship the Titanic, except this artifact didn't have a tragic ending. No one died with this statue like the once great ship.

"But if de Sea King finds out about dis…" Sebastian worried.

"It's better than going to the surface!" Donald countered.

I placed my hands on my hips and glared at the crab. The little crab backed away as he looked at me, half afraid that I would do something to hurt him. He was a tattletale so we had a good chance that Sebastian would tell. If he would tell then Ariel would be depressed again and then we would be right back to where we started, square one and back to the drawing board. It wasn't where I wanted to go with all of our efforts for her.

"The Sea King won't find out unless you tell him." I added.

The crab shrank away from me but I gave him a smile and he relaxed. I shook my head once I realized that I was going soft. I wasn't being as cruel to Sebastian as I had been to others in the past. When someone did something dishonorable and cruel I was the first to voice my opinion and show them what I thought of what they had done, particularly with bullies. Sora smiled and turned to the boys. He was obviously expecting that only he and the other boys could handle lifting the statue of stone.

"C'mon, help me move it." Sora said.

I rolled my eyes as the boys tried to move the boulder. They couldn't get it to budge. It was almost as bad as the whole block in the Coliseum in Olympus that it took all three of them to move. I sighed and turned towards Twilight. She sighed out of exasperation and slapped her palm to her forehead as she groaned. We were highly disappointed in the boys. If they only stopped and thought things through for a moment they would have realized there was an easier way to do this without giving themselves a hernia.

"Shall we help?" I asked.

She nodded and we looked around, our eyes landing on the ship. Swimming up to it we swam around looking. Twilight took the port side while I took the starboard side of the ship. I smiled as I spotted a long, sturdy, thick piece of wood. I lifted up one end, finding it was too heavy for me to lift alone. My flipper was thrashing furiously as I tried to lift it regardless. Twilight wasn't too far away but she had yet to turn to see that I needed help.

"Hey Twilight!" I called.

She swam over and helped me drag the thing down to the boys. They stopped their grunting and their fruitless pushing when they saw that we were coming over with the plank. Flounder and Sebastian looked at us rather confused. None of them had any idea what the plank was for. I shook my head. I wasn't going to wait until Sora learned the proper spell in order to get the statue to Ariel's Grotto. It would just take too much time and I'd rather not have to visit this world a hundred times over.

"What's that for?" Sora asked.

"We're going to make a lever." Twilight explained.

She smiled at the expression on Sora's face. Setting it up we adjusted it until we thought it would be at its easiest, it had been two years since I took physics so I wasn't really sure if it was. Twilight, Donald, and I pushed down on the lever while Sora and Goofy pulled the statue out from under the boulder. I grinned once it came completely free. Once it was safely out of the way we let the board go and the boulder dropped to the ground. Sora swam up to us with a confused yet happy smile on his face.

"How'd you figure that out?" Sora asked.

"School." We replied simultaneously.

"He's got a lot to catch up on. He's missed what almost one year of schooling now." I remarked.

We swam off leaving a dumbstruck Sora behind. I saw him exchange a look with Donald and Goofy before he began to follow after us. Twilight laughed as we swam away the boys dragging the statue with them. We followed Flounder to Ariel's secret place and my eyes widened at the collection. The game didn't do it justice, her collection was _huge_!

"Whoa!" Twilight said softly.

I turned as the boys entered into the grotto with the statue and pushed Twilight gently out of the way, letting them set it in the middle of the room. Once it was settled Sora, Donald, and Goofy swam out to look for Ariel, leaving Twilight and me in the grotto. I glanced over at her and settled down next to her on one of the ledges. For a moment neither of us said anything to one another and we just sat there, enjoying each other's company.

"You okay?" I asked.

"Yea, I just…" She stammered.

"Want to see Demyx?" I teased, before she could say much more.

She blushed and my mouth turned into an amused grin. She seemed very predictable now. I knew what she wanted and I knew what she thought about. She was trying hard not to show her feelings for Demyx. My fear for her being and Demyx's existence doubled as I thought about Radiant Garden. Her blush deepened as I chuckled to mask my worry. I was shaking my head before leaning back to stare up at the hole in the ceiling.

"What about you? You want to see Axel?" She asked.

I blinked and gave a slight smile. It appeared that I had become predictable as well. I glanced over at her instead of staring out at dark sea that was visible through the tiny hole. She knew me very well, just as I knew her very well. Though, I couldn't help but wonder if Axel and Demyx knew us as well as we knew them, since we had seen so much of them during the games. My heart lurched as I thought about this being merely a game. Demyx and Axel were supposed to fade and go back to nothingness.

"Yea. It's weird not seeing him. Though I doubt that's gonna happen here. He is a fire elemental after all." I explained.

She smiled and nodded before looking over at the entrance of the grotto as Sora and the others swam in. Ariel gasped in wonder swimming up to the statue. She didn't react as he stood behind her while she marveled in the sight of the fantastic statue. I was glad we were able to get this out of the way instead of coming back a hundred times over to the world, not that I didn't like being a mermaid it was actually pretty cool.

"It's a pretty cool statue, huh?" Sora asked

"It looks like some kinda prince." Donald piped in.

Ariel stared at the statue in surprise. She hadn't even thought about the man being a prince. He did look quite noble as his statue looked up at the sky with a sort of regal expression on his face. The clothes also appeared to be a give away as to who he was. The clothes were far fancier than anyone of any 'simple' birth. I sighed. Some girls only fell for men of status and it appeared that the man of the statue was only made more appealing to Ariel.

"A prince?" Ariel asked.

My gaze softened as she started singing and swimming around about how she wanted to be on the shore with him. She wanted to be like him and learn from him. But most evident of all was that she was very much in love with the man she was thinking about. She had after all saved his life, like she had in the movies and the books about the subject. Sora watched the girl with saddened yet hopeful eyes.

"Ariel… we're here to help you, you know." Sora said.

Sebastian swam up in front of the boy, holding out his pinchers as if to block us from Ariel. That wouldn't stop us from trying to help Ariel. She was in pain and we cared about her. We wouldn't let her suffer a world of torment without aid. Besides, it was all going to work out in the end. Ariel would get her happy ending and we would all live happily ever after, just as we should.

"Oh, no- you five stay out of it!" Sebastian protested.

Sora looked down at the crab. I saw his eyes flash darkly as he glared at the crab. Donald and Goofy also managed to show their disapproval of Sebastian by frowning at him and shaking their heads. Twilight also glared at the crab. Me? I was neutral. What happened happened and there was nothing we could really do to stop it unless we really fought to change it.

"Look who's talking!" Sora said sarcastically.

"Yeah! You were gonna tell her dad about it!" Donald cried accusingly.

"What am I gonna do?" Sebastian asked desperately.

Sebastian clamped his claws onto his head. He shook his head as he fussed over his choices. My eyes flicked back to the girl as she stared at the statue. She was far too wrapped up in what she was looking at to notice anything else. I looked back at Sora as he swam over to Sebastian. Donald and Goofy hovered close to Twilight and I.

"Is there any place we can stay the night here?" Sora asked.

The crab nodded and said "Of course, der is. Follow me."

I smiled and we followed the crab out of the grotto towards the palace. We settled into our respective rooms and went to sleep. Though being the night owl that I was I stayed up late staring outside at the ocean. My eyes narrowed as I heard music, a grin spreading on my face as I picked up the distinctive tone of a Sitar. Closing my eyes I drifted off to sleep with a smile on my face.


	17. Ahoy!

And we're back! Hey everyone sorry it took so long but hey what can you do. Shout outs: SexyZexy, CrimsonLaurana, Nobody-XV, twilight-yuna17, SpringBorn, ChildofStorms, antaurilover685, BAYALE, Anexi Naie Taylor, Sheshe-Mimifan01, FallenAngel10086, kh2 fan13, kangsoraaa, MizuKitsune10, Purple Ninja Tempy, and Alexandria Volturi. All of you guys get cookies for being so patient with me.

* * *

**Chapter 17: Ahoy**

Waking up the next morning was an interesting experience, as I found myself floating near the ceiling. My eye twitched slightly as my head bumped into the ceiling…again. Placing my hand on the ceiling I pushed myself down twisting so that I faced the doorway and swam out. Looking around I spotted Sebastian swimming away but decided not to follow him instead going in search of breakfast.

Swimming around with a full stomach I entered into the courtyard to see Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Twilight floating and staring at Ariel.

"This is terrible! We've got to do something." Sora said.

"She can't be in the musical like that." Goofy agreed.

He nodded as he spoke but when Donald heard this new morsel of information pertaining to the musical, his eyes lit up and he grinned at us as if he had a fantastic idea. He seemed to have a little light bulb going off above his head that only he could see. I grinned, knowing his idea was going to be shot down instantly.

"I'll sing her part instead!" He proclaimed.

"No way! Not a chance!" Sora, Twilight, and I yelled.

"What? Why not?!" Donald yelled indigently

I glanced over at Twilight and smiled as we looked at the squawking duck/squid. It was quite humorous actually. I could almost envision the duck yelling at Demyx or Axel for doing something silly which would turn out to be something really smart in the end but he would be too proud to say he was sorry. When I realized what I was doing I shook my head. I had to get Sora to see that they were good first. I didn't want to hope only to have it crushed besides they still had parts to play in the main story which couldn't be changed yet.

"Hey, it's Sebastian." Goofy said.

We turned to see the crab swimming towards us, paper clenched in his claw. As he got closer, I saw the worried expression on his face. I never really understood why he was such a worry-wart. It all turned out in the end no matter what happened. He should have picked up on the pattern by now. I mean it was rather predictable.

"Dis will never work…" He said.

"What's up?" Sora asked.

"I've composed a perfect song for de musical, but I think it's gonna be too complicated for you." The crab explained.

"Aw, c'mon! How hard can it be?" Sora said

Sebastian handed Sora the piece of music the rest of us looking over his shoulder as his mouth dropped. Boy was he wrong. Sure, Twilight and I would have no problems, since both of us played the game so many times we had it memorized and that music came rather naturally to us, the both us being somewhat musically inclined. But for Sora it was going to be hard. Donald stared at it in shock. Goofy seemed to share the sentiments of his two male companions.

"Uh, oh…" Donald murmured.

I blinked and looked at them before glancing over at Twilight and shrugging before,

"Why don't we take the music with us and as we travel you guys can practice?" I suggested.

Sora looked back at us and nodded before looking back at Sebastian. He seemed to think that it was a good idea. Okay, so Twilight and I sort of messed up the time stream by staying for two songs instead of simply one but you couldn't blame me. It would have been simply redundant to leave and come back a million times over, not to mention boring.

"It might be a little while before we can get back but there's stuff that we have to do." Sora said.

"Good luck!" The crab said.

Sebastian nodded understandingly. We all nodded and were sucked up heading back into the gummi ship. I sighed as I felt my legs hit the ground, wobbling slightly and placing my hand on the wall. My legs felt like mush beneath me and could barely hold my weight. Twilight, unfortunately, wasn't close enough to the wall and fell down. If my legs were mush then her legs were jelly since she fell down so quickly.

I smiled and reached down, having finally gotten control of my legs once again, to help Twilight up. She clasped onto my hand and yanked herself up before collapsing in her seat and bringing up the table. I turned and placed a finger on one of the buttons pulling up a virtual chess board all the pieces set up already. I waved a finger turning it so that Twilight was white and would have the first move. I looked up at her and smiled.

"Let the game commence." I said.

She looked up at me and grinned challengingly as she made the first move.

* * *

I looked up at Donald as he took Twilight's place. I hit the reset button having beaten Twilight after about five hours of playing. I cracked my back and sighed in relief as I heard the loud popping. Twilight wrinkled her nose since she disliked the habit.

"How much longer until the next world?" I asked.

"About four hours." Goofy responded.

"Thanks." I said and nodded.

I turned to the board to see that Donald had made his move and was waiting for me. I moved a pawn forward and leaned forward watching his moves. Four hours later, Donald and I were in the throes of a power struggle. Each of us had lost about half of our pieces and we were working on cornering each other's king. Donald hit the pause and save button as Sora set the ship into hover, walking over to the door and waiting for us. I stood up, stretching slightly before walking over to the others.

We teleported down and my eye twitched as I noticed that Twilight's and my clothes were the only ones that had changed. I was now wearing a white v-neck button up fitted shirt that went to my waist. My normal black coat had been changed into a brown one with gold trim. Black pants were now brown and tucked into brown leather boots. Multiple belts encircled my waist with my sword hanging off of my left hip. I still had my gloves and my necklace but instead of sunglasses on top of my head a red bandanna had taken its place.

Looking over at Twilight she was wearing a black dress with puffy sleeves that went into red gloves, and gold embroidery and went about mid-thigh. On top of that was a blood red tube top dress that stopped about halfway on the other dress with silver embroidery. A black corset wrapped around her waist. Black boots with a buckle and folded down tops covered her feet while a black pirate hat with red trimming, a white skull and cross bones and a large red feather adorned her head. Her sword now sheathed behind her back. She pointed at the boys and,

"Why in the multi-verse didn't your cloths change?" She demanded.

Sora stared at her confused for a moment before shrugging helplessly at the girl. He obviously didn't have any answers so we decided not to press him for more information if he wasn't able to provide it. She looked over at me and I just shrugged. As we walked, we looked around until Sora ran over to the ledge and stared out at the sea crossing his arms and leaning against the wall next to him.

"Wow!" Donald said in awe.

"This place is…"

"Kinda different." Goofy finished for Sora.

As we continued through the Rampart it didn't take long before we heard screams coming from the town. Both Twilight and I ran past the boys to the wall overlooking the town, Sora and the others joining us after a few seconds. Sora jumped up, leaning on his palms and looked out over the city below. I could see people running, screaming as they were chased by the infamous and dark creatures known as pirates.

"Something's up." Sora said.

"Organization XIII?" Goofy questioned.

"Or the Heartless!" Donald proclaimed.

Twilight and I both shook our heads. The boys just didn't know how wrong they were. Heartless were bad. Nobodies could be relatively worse. But pirates could be the worst of all. Some had absolutely no mercy and killed instantly in cold blood. At least with Heartless and Nobodies there was a chance to get the stolen heart back sometimes. You could 'survive' having your heart stolen. You didn't survive pirate raids if they decided to kill you.

"Worse." Twilight said.

They turned to look over at her confused as she smiled, a tight grim smile, pointing towards the harbor. In the bay sat a black boat with sails as dark as coal and a banner that could only spell death for those who met it at sea. It was the Black Pearl. I shivered in anticipation. I couldn't help the smirk that formed across my lips. This world always was rather fun, but I supposed that was because of our witty Captain Jack Sparrow.

"Pirates." I explained.

"Only one way to find out!" Sora proclaimed.

Sora looked at the group that surrounded him before looking back at the town. He had decided to step in and help the people. I smiled and shook my head, amuse he was so predictable sometimes; honestly it was probably a good thing I wasn't an enemy of his. Sometimes, I think it would be just too easy to manipulate him into doing something that would get him way too deep. We pushed off the wall and started running down off the rampart, using the nearby stairs. Twilight tripped slightly and I grabbed her arm before she fell down the stairs, the boys moving ahead of us. We were a few steps behind Sora when we spotted Pete and the pirates.

"Hey!" Sora yelled.

Pete looked over at us and pointed at us. Sora glared at him and pulled out his Keyblade. He wasn't afraid of any old pirate. I know I wasn't. I already knew their weaknesses. They couldn't die in darkness but in moonlight they were as vulnerable as a newborn infant. They were weak and magic would prove to be a valuable asset here.

"See there? I knew it! Those are the punks I was tellin' ya about." Pete said, almost gloating about the fact.

"Who're you calling punks? It's Sora, Donald, Goofy, Twilight, and Ghost to you!" Sora yelled back angrily, "And don't you forget it!" I nearly shrugged; I had never minded being called a punk before it certainly wasn't going to start now.

"That we won't. And we'll engrave it on your tombstone, to be sure." The lead pirate, Barbossa, said.

"Whoa! I like your style." Pete said

I rolled my eyes. _'Simple minds, simple pleasures,'_ I reminded myself. _'And Pete has a __very__ simple mind.' _Barbossa, however, was smart enough to ignore Pete and focus on the fighers before him. I had to give him props for not underestimating us like half a dozen other guys we had fought. He had the makings of a true villain – like Sephiroth.

"Men… half of you stay here and indulge these cullies." Barbossa ordered his men. "The rest… bring me that medallion!"

"Aye!" His men gave a cry that resounded in the area.

They all threw up their fists before splitting up, half heading into the town, the others coming after us. I narrowed my eyes at the oncoming pirates. We just had to last long enough for the clouds to move out of the way. Then we could crush them like the insects I knew they were. Twilight seemed to agree with my sentiments. She was focused and ready for battle.

"Aw, we only get to stomp on a few of you?" Sora asked sarcastically.

My eyes flicked towards Barbossa for a second as he gave a laugh before turning back to the pirates in front of me. Sora and the boys charged the pirates while Twilight and I just dodged their attacks. Sora and the others only fought for a few minutes before backing off. Sora seemed to despair in that one moment.

"It's no use! We can't beat them!" Sora said

My eye twitched and I restrained my need to whack him upside the head. I gripped my blade a little tighter. _'Sora + Depression = Bad.'_ Or so my thought process went. Sora was supposed to have angst moments but I felt like he didn't need to angst so much. Besides, it was frustrating when someone gave up so easily. We could easily turn this around if given the time.

"You shouldn't give up so easily!" I said angrily.

He looked over at me ignoring the pirate who was talking. The brunette turned back to the pirates as the clouds moved away from the moon revealing the pirates as what they really were, making the boys jump back in surprise. '_That cloud movement is really convenient…ah, only in the video game world, would things like that happen.' _I mused_._

"Yuck." Twilight muttered.

An amused smile appeared on my face. The graphics in the movie was really close to what the pirates looked like. It did them justice, although the game wasn't as detailed as the movies, naturally of course. Too bad movies couldn't capture the senses of smell and touch. It would have been completely life like if only the movie had those features. Oh well, with the way technology is advancing I would say we weren't that far off but I think I'll be sanitizing my blade when this is over.

"You best be sayin' your prayers!" One of them said.

"Hey, watch out! They can see ya! Stay away from their magic!" Pete tried to whisper but ended up yelling it anyways.

I rolled my eyes. That was such a fail. Why was he still around? If I were Maleficent I would have hired someone else to be my lackey, or perhaps she couldn't find anyone more competent, though I could beg to differ. There were plenty of bad guys in this game that could be a better lackey that Pete, though I doubt some of them would give up their positions of power for something like Pete's job. It would be like a downgrade.

"What for?" One of the skeletons asked.

"Weren't you listenin' to me before?" Pete asked completely exasperated.

"Hey, Pete, thanks for the tip!" Sora yelled over to him.

I moved forward quickly slashing into one of the pirates, re-starting the battle. Now that the moon was out defeating the pirates wasn't a problem and once they were gone, well Pete was dumb but he wasn't that dumb. He realized that he was next and like all smart men, when he realized he was way out of his league, he decided to tactically retreat, also known as running for the hills. What a loser… He was a shame to all sidekicks and lackeys everywhere. Robin was probably turning in his grave.

"Hey! This ain't over!" Pete said.

I raised an eyebrow as he ran away. _'Yes, Pete this isn't over and yet you run away?_'I thought. He was such a coward. It was a shame to see what the lackeys had come to. No. We had to get the type of lackeys that ran away like yellow-bellied snakes that they were.

"If Pete's here that must mean we have work to do." Sora said.

"Yep. And that pirate captain looked pretty mean, too." Goofy agreed.

"Man, I'd hate to see him turned into a Heartless." Sora admitted.

Sora scratched the back of his head. I had to agree with him. If Barbossa became a Heartless it could only spell disaster for Port Royal. Heartless would spring out of the ground like daisies. To imagine Heartless that would be like the pirates under Barbossa's control was worrisome, to say the least.

"Well, we _are_ here…" Donald said.

"Hey, maybe we can take a pirate ship out for a spin!" Sora said in excitement.

Goofy and Donald stared at the boy in surprise while I simply raised an eyebrow at him. He smiled and placed his hands behind his head. There was sheepish smile on his face as he looked at us. I shook my head. He was such a kid at times. Besides, it wouldn't be a good idea to simply steal a ship and take it for a joy – oh wait. We were going to do just that. I grinned.

"Just kidding!" He laughed, "Weren't those guys headed into town?"

"Yeah. I think they were looking for treasure." Goofy said.

"To be more specific, they were looking for a medallion." Twilight said.

Twilight held up a finger, making herself seem more knowledgeable in the subject of pirates. We took off running towards the town Sora dropping back so he could talk to me. I motioned for Twilight to walk on ahead. She smiled, nodded and walked ahead. I was glad she was giving Sora and I a moment to talk. However, I didn't look at him. I looked at the road ahead instead of the brunet at my side.

"What did you mean I give up too easily?" Sora asked.

I blinked and looked over at the boy before smiling. He was learning, that much I could tell. He would be a better person by the end of this or at least I hoped he would. He was already starting to act a little less childish as he did throughout the game but he was really starting to grow up now. He looked at me curiously.

"You have to wait for the opportune moment." I told him.

He stared at me confused for a moment before looking around as we entered the town. It was a nice town, I had to admit. In the game I never really paid attention to the details, just the Heartless that would be attacking us at any second. I grimaced as I remembered that small detail. I started running faster as I heard someone protesting. _'Faster!'_ I told myself, _'Go faster!'_ I didn't want to miss a second of this adventure. Pirates were rather fun after all.

"Elizabeth!" a man's voice yelled out.

Everyone sped up to see a young man stopped by Heartless. He looked on in shock and confusion. The creatures crept towards him menacingly, threatening his heart. He just stood there. Any normal person would have at least defended themselves or run by now but no he had to just stand there like some fool.

"What are they?" He asked.

We ran faster so we could be in front of him. He stared at us, just as shocked and confused as when he looked at the Heartless. I wanted to scream in frustration. He was acting like some freaking damsel in distress who didn't know what to do. Sure, he may not have seen Heartless before but if something dark and scary comes my way I attack first, ask questions later. I don't stand there and wait to see if it's friendly or not. I mean seriously, come on!

"It's Heartless!" Donald yelled, "Watch out!"

Skidding to a stop, with weapons drawn, Sora glanced back at the young man. He appeared slightly miffed when he saw Twilight and I standing in front of him but I turned my attention back to the Heartless in front of us. I rolled my eyes. Men really needed to get over the whole superiority complex. Some women were just as good, if not better than, men in a fight.

"We'll deal with them! Go! Take cover!" Sora yelled.

He skirted around us his eyes lingering in concern and suspicion on me and Twilight before running off to try and save the girl that had been taken by the pirates. We fought the Heartless off quickly before looking up to see the young man returning to us. There was a crestfallen look on his face but he looked happy that we were okay.

"Well done! My own fencing skills are not to be ashamed of… but I've never faced foes such as that before." He admitted.

Sora placed his hands behind his head grinning. I rolled my eyes. Way to inflate his ego Will - as if it needed to be even more inflated in the first place. Now he would be cocky for a little bit until those pirates sorted him out and knocked him down a peg or so. Or Twilight would just slap him upside the back of the head, whichever came first.

"You really think we're that good?" Sora asked.

"Don't get cocky kid." I said.

I smiled and shook my head. He turned to me and smiled when I winked teasingly at him. You know he might have passed as my kid brother with the way that I watched over him. Donald and Goofy, though they may have their moments, were smart enough to know what was what and how to take care of themselves but Sora… He still had this sort of innocence about him while other times he showed more wisdom than one would expect someone his age to have.

"Did you find your friend?" Goofy asked.

The young man shook his head. The dejection was evident by the tone in his voice and the slump of his shoulders. His eyes, which had sparkled with fever when he spoke about sword fighting, were no longer glistening with the fascination that he had before. He was obviously worried about Elizabeth, wherever she may be. I rolled my eyes, knowing she was with the pirates.

"I was too late. But I must rescue her! Would you help me?" He said.

"Of course! I'm Sora. This is Donald, Goofy, Twilight, and Ghost." Sora announced, nodding enthusiastically.

The blacksmith looked between all of us for a moment. He seemed skeptical that a group of kids – younger than he was, though with Twilight and I that was a barely – was going to accomplish what he had failed to do. I smirked. If only he knew exactly who we were. We were the problem solvers of the worlds. Any time someone was in trouble we showed up.

"And I'm William Turner, but call me Will." He replied.

"Okay, Will. Let's go!" Sora said.

Will turned and pointed in the direction of the docks. I looked in that direction, spotting a large ship, which I recognized as the Interceptor from the movies. This was going to be great. We actually got board the ship. I couldn't help the grin that spread across my face. Twilight was smiling too. Hi ho, off to work we go. Today's job? Pirate hunting, oh joy!

"Right. We've got to get to the docks!" Will said.

He took off running the rest of us following behind him. I was at the back of the group while we were running; I paused for a moment before turning and grabbing the hidden chests around the town. I ran back to the group as they stopped at the edge of the dock staring at a rapidly disappearing Black Pearl. Glancing over at the nearby docked ship I smiled as I saw a familiar dreadlocked man walking up onto the Interceptor. I walked further onto the dock stopping just before the gangplank of the Interceptor.

"Then she's long gone. The Black Pearl is nigh uncatchable. Best find yourself another girl, mate." The man yelled.

Twilight jogged over to me and I leaned over to the other girl. She leaned closer so I could whisper softer since we didn't want anyone else overhearing what we had to say. No one was supposed to know we knew who was who and what was going to happen. Granted we were going to, hopefully, change things later if we could but still. We didn't want our cover blown so soon.

"This said by the man who's been chasing that ship for almost ten years now, he really shouldn't be one to talk." I muttered.

She snorted and nodded slightly in agreement as the rest of the group headed towards the Interceptor, the boys following a few steps behind Will. Twilight and I just relaxed where we were by the gangplank. We were in no real hurry to get anywhere but that didn't seem to bother anyone else.

"You… What are you doing aboard the Interceptor? She's off limits to civilians." Stated a serious Will.

"If I see one I shall inform you immediately." I whispered.

I tried to contain a smile but couldn't. It was a fruitless effort so I let the grin grow wide and more defined as I recalled how our witty Jack Sparrow typically reacted to such things. Man, this was great. Too bad no one back home would ever believe us if we tried to explain this to them. Oh well, somehow I think we'll survive. Twilight glanced over at me quirking a smile.

"What, do you have that movie memorized?" Twilight asked.

"Practically," I answered.

We both chuckled. We were such fan girls some times. At least we didn't swoon when we met some of the most awesome of characters. The swashbuckling, handsome, daredevil good yet sometimes bad man that Jack was had no effect on us other than complete and utter awe. He was pretty freaking awesome when you met him in person, if I say so myself.

"Ah, fortunate that I'm going to commandeer her, then. She'll make a fine pirate ship." Jack answered dismissively.

"A pirate!" Sora cried in excitement.

I raised an eyebrow at the boy at my side. Could he seriously not tell that the man was a pirate? Everything down from the way he dressed, the way he spoke to the way he walked screamed pirate. Even if I hadn't seen the movies or played the games I would have been able to tell he was a pirate on sight. Particularly, since he was such a shady character.

"You couldn't tell?" I asked, "That is-"

"Captain Jack Sparrow, if you please." Jack said, introducing himself.

Will placed a hand on his chin thinking for a minute. He seemed to be contemplating the pros and cons of having a pirate at his side. There would be good and bad things about having Jack around. Betrayal, backstabbing, the obvious sexist attitude against women and it seemed the list could go on for a while for the cons unfortunately. What are the pros you ask? Well he was funny, pretty handy in a fight, and overall a decent guy everything considered.

"Take me with you. Help me hunt down the Black Pearl and save Miss Swan," Will said, "I got you out of that jail cell, Sparrow. Do this and your debt's repaid."

"You'll have to win fair lady's heart alone, mate. I see no profit in it for me." Jack responded.

I smiled. To convince a pirate to do what you want you have to first tempt him with something he wants more than anything else in the world. You have to think like a pirate. Pirates were greedy, creatures of habit particularly inclined to booze and treasure. We could provide everything that Jack wanted, aside from Sora's Keyblade. I simply couldn't wrap my mind around an image of Jack running around with a Keyblade. It just didn't seem right.

"What isn't there to profit in it?" I asked.

The Captain and the others looked over at me as I placed a hand on my hip and smirked staring up at the man on ship. No one but Twilight knew I had this sneaky side to me. I could easily convince him to do what we wanted him to with a few well placed words. Sora was staring at me impressed while Twilight grinned at me, knowing that I was enjoying my conversation with the pirate. It was good to negotiate without the use of weapons.

"You can get the Pearl, exact a little revenge on a mutinous first mate, and gather some treasure on the side…" I explained, "Besides are you sure you can sail her, all on your own?"

He placed a hand on his chin contemplating what I had said as the others stared at me, with the exception of Twilight, in confusion and mild surprise at my 'dark side'. Sometimes to beat a person you have to be able to play their game, and you have to play it well. Sparrow let his hand down. For a moment he just stared at me, as if wondering if I were real or just a figment of his imagination. Then he grinned and stepped aside, motioning that we were allowed to board 'his' ship.

"The lass has a point. Welcome aboard." Jack said.

I grinned before climbing up onto the Interceptor stopping next to Jack. I looked up at him with a smile across my lips. He stared at me, uncertain as to what I was going to say to him next. If anything my smile twisted into a dark smirk as I looked at the shady pirate captain. It was nice to have someone who was semi-intelligent aside from Twilight, who understood sarcasm, wasn't so innocent and would actually joke back. It made me miss Axel.

"The name's Ghost, not lass." I told him.

"I'd say Fire Sprite with that spirit." Jack said flirtatiously.

He looked over at me smirking. I smiled and stepped to the side to let the others on board. I snorted and tried to smother something akin to a laugh. He really was too much. I mean seriously, to call me Fire Sprite was completely ridiculous. I was nothing like a sprite though I knew that I had a 'fiery' personality. What can I say? A girl's got to stand up for herself and I was never one to take shit from a person.

"Now, now flattery will get you nowhere Captain."

I danced out of arms reach as he tried to grab my waist. He frowned. He seemed to realize that I wasn't going to simply bow down to his will and do whatever it was that he wanted me to do. I wasn't the type of girl to let anyone tell me what to do. Axel and Twilight could attest to that, as well as a great many friends that I had back home. The captain looked over at Will as the young man boarded the ship.

"Thanks, Sparrow." Will said.

"_Captain_ Sparrow." Jack said with emphasis.

The lack of title seemed to annoy Jack more than anything else that we had done so far tonight. Even though we, mainly me, roped him into running around on Will's quest to find his lost love and destroy pirates that could only be killed in moonlight. Some friends we were. I covered my mouth as I tried my best not to laugh at the overly annoyed pirate.

"I'm Sora. This is Donald, Goofy, and Twilight."

"I'm Will Turner."

He turned all the way around to look at younger man. There was a look in Jack's eyes that really confused everyone besides Twilight and myself. It was amusement and a slight twinge of nostalgia as well as the darker expression of revenge. Jack was so going to use Will to get back at Barbossa for all those years he lost.

"That would be short for William, I imagine. No doubt for your father, eh?" Jack commented.

"Yes." Will said slightly confused.

I could already see the wheels turning in Jack's head. He was already planning on his revenge against Barbossa. It didn't matter if any of us got hurt along the way so I was going to have to make sure to watch our backs. I trusted Jack about as far as I could throw him. Even though I knew what was going to happen I was still not going to allow myself to trust him since trust and respect was something someone had to earn in my book.

"Well, then, Mr. Turner. You get us ready to make way. I've some effects to liberate." he said.

"Aye-aye! But hurry." Will said.

With that Jack started walking away with Will watching him leave. Jack just continued down onto the dock waving a hand back at the man. Will seemed torn. He wanted to go after Elizabeth but Jack was holding him up. I shook my head at Jack's methods of stalling for time. He could obviously see that Will was distressed about Elizabeth's capture but we did need that compass.

"Naturally," Jack said.

I leaned on the railing overlooking the docks as the boys following Donald, headed down to the dock. Twilight stood at my side. We just watched. We didn't really need to be involved just yet. No one was going to fight and no one was going to do something incredibly stupid, we hoped. I wondered what Riku would think, once he found out that Sora made friends who were actually fairly bright. He might just have a heart attack.

"Sora!" the duck said.

"You really wanna be a pirate?" Goofy asked.

"Of course not!" Sora said.

I gave him a skeptical look as he smiled and shook his head. Almost every single boy I ever knew, which was quite a few as I grew up with boys, always played pirates when they were younger, as well as cops and robbers and tackle football; I dominated at football when me and my friends were younger. Sora was more of the guy who would be the copper not the robber. He was too sweet and the cheerful disposition made him a very unlikely robber but then again perhaps it would make him a good robber. No one would ever suspect the guy who was grinning so hard his face could crack. Jack stopped and leaned down towards Sora.

"What do you make of this Will?" Jack asked.

"I don't know. We just met him." Sora replied.

Sora shrugged. He wasn't that great at judging someone from first impressions alone or perhaps he liked to keep himself a little more open-minded about the subject. People changed and so did the opinions of those people. Some people were as unchanging as stone while others were like storms, unpredictable and wild. Jack straightened up, smiling as he looked at Will.

"Hmm… I think my luck's about to change."

We watched as Jack left and I sighed as the boys headed back onto the ship. I smiled as I felt the ship rock gently with the waves, glad to be back on the water. It took Jack about ten minutes to get back to the ship with his effects and he immediately went to the helm, steering us out of the harbor once we had gotten all of the lines off. I glanced over at Twilight who had come to lean on the railing next to me. I raised an eyebrow at her slightly angry, slightly dumbfounded, and slightly grossed out face.

"You got a taste of Jack's flirting, didn't you?" I asked.

She nodded and my grin widened in amusement. She looked over at me with a look of utter disgust. I wondered just how badly he flirted with her and whether or not I should go and kick his ass. Pirate or not I would beat him senseless if he tried anything with my friend. Maybe, just maybe, if I played my cards right I might get Sora to help me beat Jack up, just a little.

"Have you had to deal with it yet?" She asked.

I snorted. Had she seriously not been paying attention? Jack had been flirting with me this entire time. Though, he hadn't gone and given her a nickname yet. Or at least I hoped that he hadn't. Demyx wouldn't have been too happy with him for flirting with 'his' girl, though I don't think it was official yet but hey a girl can hope they would be good for each other. I would be thoroughly amused though if Demyx decided to make a stand against a pirate. My munny would be on Demyx since well, when he got mad, he sure could fight!

"Ever since I stepped onto this ship," I responded. "Remember though, this_ is _Jack. He flirts with any girl if she's breathing."

She smiled slightly but then tried to smother her laugh to no avail. I smiled as she laughed out right making the others turn to look over at us. Sure, they didn't know what we were laughing about but Donald and Goofy smiled at us while Sora gave a soft chuckle. Pushing off the rail I turned to face Jack and Will.

"Why are you so fixated on that compass?" Will asked Jack.

Jack glanced back down at the compass adjusting our course slightly. His eyes were fixed upon the spinning compass in his hands. I wondered what it would have pointed to if I held it. I didn't even know what I wanted being the 'take it as it comes' sort of person that I could be so perhaps it would just spin wildly in circles. Maybe it wouldn't even work for me since I wasn't even of this… universe? Or was it a dimension? Perhaps a galaxy? I didn't exactly know where I was or how I got here but it didn't really bother me oddly enough.

"It'll be she that leads us to Isla de Muerta…where Barbossa's headed. Savvy?" Jack responded.

"How do you know?" Sora asked.

Sora tilted his head, confused. Jack glanced at the compass again before shutting it with a snap and putting it away. Sora pouted a little. It seemed that he wanted to take a closer look at that compass of Jack's. I didn't blame him. If Sora did get his hands on it he would be able to find Riku and King Mickey in a snap and then he could go home and do whatever it is retired Keyblade wielders did. Not that they would ever be able to retire, what with that whole there will always be darkness in people's hearts thing.

"Ah, lad… He and I once had our eyes on a treasure…Aztec gold," Jack explained, "'Twas hidden on the Isla de Muerta. But he turned traitor and stole my ship."

"So he's after the treasure, then." Sora said

Jack, Twilight, and I shook our heads in disagreement. Jack didn't notice that Twilight and I were agreeing with his disagreement. Jack wanted nothing to do with that treasure. Nothing good ever came from cursed gold after all.

"Treasure's already his. So's the curse upon it. I've no desire for such treacherous spoils. But I will have back what's mine… the Black Pearl." Jack explained

Sora and the others, except Donald who stayed at the helm, walked down and into the cabin so they could eat and sleep before their watch; how ever that was going to be worked out, as we weren't going to be docking at the island till tomorrow night. Twilight waved slightly as she headed into the crowded cabin leaving only me and Jack on deck. I turned and looked back out to sea for a while before hearing footsteps coming up behind me. I glanced over my shoulder slightly.

"You sure know a lot about things you shouldn't Fire Sprite." Jack said.

I turned, leaned against the railing, and raised an eyebrow. I hadn't expected him to actually come and find me so he could talk to me. I supposed that I would have to kick it up a notch if I wanted him to leave me alone. I didn't take to kindly to the constant flirting with me. I preferred to be left alone, something that Sora seemed to understand so he only approached me when he knew it was time to or when I went to him first. I had been a loner for a long time and I didn't see that changing any time soon.

"Your point?" I asked.

He placed a hand on his hip, waving the other nonchalantly. I tried not to snigger when I pictured him in a frilly pink apron. I really did. Okay, so you see through that lie. It wasn't my fault. I blame the multiple fanfictions that I read back when I was home. Crack fandoms can do anything to one's mind, even corrupt it and trust me some have corrupted my already twisted mind.

"You should let that flame die down a little and not shine so brightly. It might draw unwanted attention."

I blinked. For a moment he actually sounded serious, while still keeping a flirtatious edge to it. How completely like Jack to say something important while still making it sound so unimportant at the same time. Then I blinked. I had been giving a bit away to Sora, maybe without even knowing it but the subtle hints would be enough to tip even him off eventually. He would finally realize that I knew too much about everything. I had to play my cards carefully.

"That Fire Sprite thing is going to stick isn't it?" I asked with an amused smile.

He smirked before walking off, leaving me to contemplate what he had said. He disappeared into the cabin and I shook my head the smile diminishing slightly as I turned and walked into the cabin. _If only you knew how much I actually knew about you, Jack. _As soon as I entered I looked around and noticed that Twilight wasn't there. I glanced over at Sora.

"Where's Twilight?" I asked.

He shrugged and looked around as if he had just noticed that she was gone in the first place. Will pointed over to a door. I eyed the door for a moment, wondering where it led. It hadn't been shown in the game but the game had been seriously limited on what it had shown in the bowls of the ship. It was a small cramped room, last I checked and we were all going to end up tied up and waiting for the ship to explode until Jack decides to spare us all by cutting the ropes.

"She's in the galley." Will answered.

"What?" I yelped.

My mouth dropped. I dashed into the room, leaving the others confused. I slammed the door behind me causing Twilight to jump and look at me sheepishly. She knew she had been ratted out but she didn't know who did it. My only question was what she was thinking in cooking. She couldn't cook. Last time she tried she had brought cookies in for a class and gave half of it food poisoning. It was quite the story that I received in the bathroom one day, trying not to puke myself, as I held back the hair of another friend of mine that lived in the dorm as she bent over a toilet trying not to puke up any organs. Ah, college what you do for friends is amazing.

"What did I say about cooking?" I asked.

"Not to." She replied.

She scratched her cheek and smiled. I sighed for a moment taking the pan that she had been holding in her hand and setting it down on the stove. She pouted in defeat, feeling like she couldn't do anything useful. I grimaced and tried to think of a way to spare us all from sickness while still keeping her involved in all of this. I raised an eyebrow at her.

"You wanna help?" I asked.

She smiled and nodded eagerly as we set about making dinner, keeping her away from anything flammable.

* * *

"Now that's a good meal." A happy pirate captain said.

Jack leaned back in his chair with a contented sigh patting his stomach. I smiled and wiped my hands off before heaping another plate with food and grabbing a glass full of water as well as silverware and headed towards the door. I paused, fumbling to open the door with a cup of water in my hand. To my delight I managed.

"Now where do ya think yer heading off with that?" Jack called.

"In case you forgot Donald hasn't eaten anything yet and he's probably lamenting that we forgot him. _So_ you, go back to drinking your rum."

I glanced back and smirked at the disgruntled expression on Jack's face. Sora and Twilight exchanged glances and hid their smiles in their cups so that Jack didn't know they were laughing at him. I walked out the door, it swinging shut behind me as I headed up to the helm. I smiled as it turned out I was right and Donald was complaining to no one that we had forgotten him. I hadn't forgotten him and I doubted that Twilight had either, I just ate faster than she did. My head popped into his view.

"You hungry Donald?" I asked.

The duck turned to me as I placed the plate and glass on the deck in front of me. He gave an excited quack before running forward and diving on the food. I backed away with an upraised eyebrow. He was a guy after all and guys tended to like food, especially if someone made it for them and saved them the trouble of making it themselves.

"Sheesh, you'd think we never feed you." I muttered.

I glanced up and spotted the crow's nest. I grinned to myself as I walked over. The stars would seem rather close from being up so high and I was sure that the view would have been pretty killer. Climbing the rigging I made my way up to the top and sat down, staring at nothing in particular. My eyes were just taking in the sights all around me.

"Hey, Ghost?" Twilight called.

I stood up and looked down at her. I leaned over the edge looking down at the girl. She smiled when she saw me sitting up in the nest. We waved at one another for a moment before she lowered her arm and I retracted my hand. She seemed to know that I needed some time to myself so she would keep the others off my back for a while.

"Yea?" I called back.

"Nothing! Just wondering where you were!" She replied.

I rolled my eyes and settled back down. I was fine. There was no need to worry about me since I could handle myself but still… It was nice to have someone who cared if something happened to me. I heard the door close and than nothing but waves. I closed my eyes just letting the peaceful moment sink in when there was a tug from the darkness and a warping sound from behind me.

"You are hard to track down sometimes, you know that?" He asked.

"Well there is a reason that I'm called Ghost." I replied.

I smiled and looked up at the red head at my side. Axel raised an eyebrow smirking down at me. It was good to see him again. I wondered to myself if Twilight was going to be visited by Demyx later on or if Demyx was on a mission or something. The poor guy really needed to get out of the Organization. It simply wasn't the place for someone who was as sweet as he was. It was eating him alive.

"I thought that was because you could sneak up on people." Axel said.

"To sneak up on people you have to be able to travel below their radar." I explained.

I chuckled as he sat down next to me. He smiled and shook his head at my logic upon the matter. The wind blew around us. I shivered and instinctively leaned closer to Axel for warmth. He was more than happy to oblige my silent request. In fact, he seemed almost ready for me to lean towards him. I wasn't going to complain. I was rather cold. Now don't get me wrong I like the cold but not when it's a windy cold.

"So what have you been up to lately?" Axel asked.

I blinked slightly owlish. Of all the questions to ask me he was asking what I had been up to. Surely he had gotten a report back from Demyx. Maybe he just wanted to hear it from me. It was actually kind of sweet. I was about to answer when I heard the others below the deck. They were moving about quite a bit.

"Fire Sprite, you spot anything up there?" Jack yelled.

I stood up, shoving Axel's head down further, making sure that his vibrant red spikes wouldn't show so that the others could see him. He opened his mouth to protest but shut it again as my foot connected with his thigh. He winced and rubbed a hand over the spot I kicked. I grimaced slightly and sent him an apologetic look before I leaned over so I could look down at Jack who was standing at the helm.

"Not a thing." I responded.

He nodded and waved slightly and I sat back down. I glanced over at Axel as I saw him raise an eyebrow. I smiled sheepishly, knowing that I had some explaining to do. The look in Axel's eyes was worth it in my opinion though. He looked like he was going to have a coronary. I had to swallow hard to keep my own laughter bottled up inside.

"Fire Sprite?" He questioned.

"He's nicknamed me." I replied simply.

I gave a half-shrug. I didn't nickname myself, though I had to agree it sort of fit. I blinked in surprise as I saw an angry expression appear on his face; raising an eyebrow questioningly. I didn't see what was so bad about being nicknamed. Sure, I didn't go throwing nicknames around but I wasn't exactly going to reject one either.

"What?" I asked

"He's flirting with you." Axel said through clenched teeth.

He turned to look at me for a moment before turning away. Anger was dancing in his eyes like fire. It was rather fitting since he could control flames and all of that. I blinked before stifling a laugh and looking away. He turned to stare at me the angry expression not having left his face. I looked back up at him before deciding to tease him a little.

"Are you jealous?" I teased.

"No!" Axel said loudly and indigently.

His mouth dropped open and he blinked for a moment as I jumped on him my hand clamped over his mouth. Frantically I looked down to see if the others had any reaction to the loud outburst he had. No one had moved from their posts, much to my relief. I sighed contently. My head slumped against his chest for a moment and then I sprang back up, anger flashing in my eyes now.

"Idiot! Do you want to get caught?" I hissed, "As far as they're concerned you're still part of the Organization! Don't go blowing your cover!"

He stared up at me with wide eyes and I blinked taking stock of our position. I blushed and pushed myself up off of him, looking away. He didn't seem to have noticed the slightly awkward position we had been in moments before. He sat up as I got control of my face before I smiled over at him. I was trying my best to forget everything that had just happened.

"Besides Jack flirts with every girl." I responded.

He stared at me for a moment trying to figure out what I was talking about, rolling his eyes when he remembered. I was teasing him and he knew this. I was treating it as a sort of revenge for not coming and seeing me for a while. But then again he did have good reasons as to why he couldn't come, especially with Atlantica and all of the water.

"Yea that really made me feel better." He said sarcastically.

I chuckled and shook my head leaning against the mast and staring out at the sea. I shrugged my coat higher and wrapped my arms around myself. The Caribbean while warm during the day was cold at night but it was even worse when you were out at sea. I blinked as I felt a weight wrap itself around my shoulder. Blinking I looked at it, to see that it was Axel's arm as he pulled me closer to him, the fire elemental sending warmth my way. I looked down for a moment before looking up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Isn't this a form of flirting?" I asked.

He grimaced slightly as I laughed, snuggling into him more as the wind blew harder.


	18. Bloody Pirates!

**FINALLY!** College has been seriously kicking my ass for pretty much the past month. T_T I'm so far behind on my writing. Anyways, here's the next chapter for all you wonderful patient people. Shout outs: Elemental Wish, heartlessneko, twilight-yuna17, SunshineGirl177, Kayla, Ryuu814 (that was one very long conversation we had, sorry I haven't been able to get back to you recently), FallenAngel10086, The Shadowed Soul, bitchybrat, Kanika Meskhenet, SpringBorn, Celia - Mutias, Alexandria Volturi, Koinu15, Kawaiikitty513, x-SashaRose-x, I got mugged by a penguin, three days grace luver, neko luna-chan, and Kora Bloom.

Holy crap that was a lot of people. Sheesh. :D

Discalimer: How many times must the industries see this to get it through their thick skulls that we have no ownership claims...no matter how much we want them.

Enjoy.

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* * *

****Chapter 18: Bloody Pirates**

I groaned and turned slightly burying my head into the comfy, warm pillow as the sun came up. Blinking I sighed as I saw the black coat. I glanced up at Axel who was still asleep, and leaning against the mast. His arms were wrapped around my waist, his head leaning on my own, bright red spikes mixing with dark blonde. I smiled briefly before trying to get out of his grasp without waking him up. It didn't work. While I did succeed in not walking him up, I didn't succeed in getting away from him.

His arms had tightened on my waist as I was standing up, dragging me back down and onto his lap. My face turned about as red as his hair as I sat there for a moment. I took a deep breath before twisting so I could see the red head. I poked his shoulder, as I couldn't reach his face. He groaned and ignored it as I poked him again sighing. It was nice but I still had a job to do. Plus I didn't need anyone finding me in this... slightly compromising position.

"I would like to get up at some point." I said quietly

He nuzzled his face in my hair and said something incoherent. Had I been Twilight my face would have been as red as a tomato but I wasn't Twilight. She never seemed to manage to avoid embarrassment around guys, except for Demyx, though I guess I sort of had an unfair advantage. All of my friends back home for a long time had only been guys. I managed an expression of complete amusement that I knew if Axel saw it he would have been slightly embarrassed, if he could manage such a thing. I raised an eyebrow at him slightly confused but smug all the less.

"What?" I asked.

"Leave me alone." He muttered.

He moved his face slightly. I smirked in amusement. I didn't know he wasn't a morning person. I would have bet all of the munny in my pocket that Demyx was a morning person so Axel would get really ticked off. No wonder he was always in such a testy mood whenever he dealt with him in the game. I liked it when Axel was rather relaxed liked this. He didn't get angry too much and he actually seemed human for a moment. It made me hopeful that we could perhaps return their hearts someday.

"Sorry no can do."

"Why not?" He asked.

He opened his eyes blearily. I knew that if I had been anyone else I would have been a fiery crisp and fluttering ash in the wind. He wouldn't have been pleased, to say the least. Demyx might have been the only one who could avoid being a crisp because of his control of water. I tried to picture a wet Axel and had to choke back a laugh, disguised as a cough. My eyes crinkled as a gentle smile crossed my lips.

"Because you won't let me," I replied.

He blinked rapidly finally waking up and seeing where he was holding me. A cocky grin spread across his lips. He pressed his forehead against mine. We both smiled at one another. He loosened his grip on me but I didn't move. I was more than reluctant to go back down. Jack wasn't exactly something that I wanted to deal with, particularly since he was hitting on Twilight and I because we were women. If he tried anything again I was going to knock him out, captain or not.

"You know you're enjoying it." He said teasingly.

I tilted my head and raised an eyebrow at the expression on his face. I smirked as I looked at him which caused confusion to flash in his eyes. He couldn't read the expression in my eyes. I couldn't help but be glad of that. He didn't exactly have a heart so he couldn't tell what I was feeling. It would be harder to tease him once I did manage to get him one but I was going to enjoy teasing him while I could.

"Never said I wasn't," I said.

Axel turned beet red as I continued

"I just want to get up before they try to make Twilight cook again," I added.

He cringed as he remembered the wildfire incident back in the Land of Dragons. He reluctantly released me. Thus, allowing me to stand up. I looked down at him and offered him my hand so he could stand up as well. Axel smiled and took my hand. He pulled himself up so that he towered over me once more.

"You'd better get out of here before anyone notices you," I told him, "Wouldn't want to get into a fight on board ship, would we?"

He smirked slightly but vanished into a portal of darkness nonetheless and didn't say a word otherwise. I stretched as I couldn't feel the presence of darkness anymore. I climbed down the rigging, see Jack at the helm, and walked into the cabin, stepping over the limbs and heads of the sleeping occupants. I walked into the galley and began cooking breakfast with a shake of my head.

I poked my head into the cabin and chuckled as I saw everyone still asleep. I opened the door and let the smell of the cooking food waft into the room. As expected Sora was the first to wake up, drooling. The others woke up confused as to who was making a racket but had soon joined the boy at the table waiting for the food. I glanced up in the general direction of the helm. Jack was still there and I doubted he would be coming down any time soon.

"Was Jack up there all night?" I asked.

"No, I got midnight duty and then he came back at around dawn." Will explained.

Will shook his head as he answered. He turned his attention to the food that I had placed in front of him. I blinked and grabbed a plate of food as well as a bottle of rum, glad that I had eaten while I cooked I probably would have lost a couple of fingers if not an arm the way they were going at it, before heading out to the man. I headed up the stairs and raised an eyebrow at Jack as he stared at his compass for a minute than adjusted our course slightly. Raising the plate in front of his face I tried to get his attention without startling him.

"Hungry?" I asked.

He jumped slightly turning to stare at me for a moment. I was staring at his hand though with my jaw clenched. He glanced down to see the pistol clenched in his hand before holstering it quickly. It was like he didn't want me to know that he almost shot me in the face but how could I have not noticed? I didn't say anything. He could have shot me. Some small voice in the back of my head told me that Axel wouldn't have been very pleased with that prospect. Obviously, Jack was on edge and was expecting a fight, though not from me.

"You're going to end up dead sneaking up on people one of these days Fire Sprite."

"So you're not hungry?" I asked softly.

I blinked, trying to make myself appear innocent in all manners of speaking. He reached over and snatched the plate out of my hand and started tucking in with a vengeance. I rolled my eyes. I smiled slightly and swished the bottle of rum in my hand instantly getting the older man's attention. He swallowed thickly and tried to clear his throat.

"Ye certainly know how to make a man happy," Jack told me, "Ye are going to make some man very happy and as it just so happens I'm willing to take up the position."

I handed the bottle to him and his delight seemed to radiate from every greasy pore of his body as I raised an eyebrow at the statement of which he just hurtled at me. Axel would so have turned him into a crisp if he found out. The thought only contributed to the smug smirk that was spreading across my face as I stared at the womanizing pirate. At least he was leaving Twilight alone for now but he'd bother her too once I left.

"Really?" I asked, as if I truly considered it, "Hm… I think not."

His mouth dropped down and I laughed quietly shaking my head and walking down to the lower deck. Glancing over I saw Twilight leaning against the wall, I smiled at her. She returned the smile and followed me over to the railing. She leaned next to me and for a moment we just sat their, relaxing and taking everything in. The ocean was beautiful. It was a shame that a battle was coming up soon. It wouldn't look so inviting then.

"I wonder how Axel would react to the fact that Jack is flirting with you constantly?" she asked.

"He got jealous." I replied

My grin widened as I looked at her. She just stared at me for a moment as she tried to comprehend. Then she blinked and started laughing as realization dawned on her. I allowed myself a small chuckle to escape my mouth. It was good to be able to laugh even though a basic light versus darkness war was going on around us, not to mention those on the side of twilight.

"He already knows!" she gasped. "Oh that's good!"

I chuckled again and bobbed my head as she laughed even harder. Suddenly she stopped laughing. My eyes flickered from the ocean to her. I blinked as she groaned, I'm sure my expression showed my obvious concern in the matter as she placed a hand on her head rubbing her temples. I could feel my heart skip a beat as I looked at the pained expression on her face. I watched her for a second, wondering what I should do or even say to her.

"You okay?" I finally asked.

"I think I'm going crazy." She muttered.

She nodded and then shook her head, obviously unable to make up her own mind. I couldn't help my mouth twitching into a small smile. Joking about it made it less frightening but I was still worried about her. If anything happened to her I would never forgive myself, even if it wasn't something I could protect her from, even if it wasn't my fault. She was my best friend. I would die for her if I had to.

"Twilight, you've been crazy for a while." I said

"I'm serious! I'm…" she said loudly and then her voice dropped and then she said, "…hearing voices."

She turned to look over at me and I leaned back slightly in surprise. She looked so serious, so afraid that I became nervous to even look at her. For a moment, everything felt numb, my mind, my body, and even my heart. I swallowed thickly but my mouth felt as dry as a desert even though I had plenty of water to keep me hydrated. My eyes narrowed but the tease popped out of my mouth before I could stop it.

"Well, if it sounds like Jessie McCartney, tell me."

"But it does sound like Jessie McCartney." She protested.

Her eyes narrowed as she looked at me. I stared at her my mouth dropping slightly; I hadn't thought that a dub joke would actually produce results, then turning into a gigantic grin. I bent over the rail trying desperately to stifle my laughter as she watched me confused. Then again, I realized, if I just told her that I was hearing Jessie McCartney inside my head and she just laughed instead of said anything then I would be slightly confused as well. But I mean come on, since when has anything about any of this been normal?

"Twilight… I think… you might be talking to Roxas!" I explained

She blinked rapidly in surprise, listening to someone besides me, whom I had no doubt in my mind was Roxas finally congratulating someone on figuring out who he was. I raised an eyebrow having finally stopped laughing. Though, it made me wonder about her connection to the boy. If he could talk to her then I worried if someone would be able to talk to me. I definitely wouldn't have wanted a sadist like Larxene in my head or a creeper like Vexen whispering in my ear...not that she would really mind the Chilly Academic. She always sort of liked the scientist.

"Um… my mind buddy just agreed with you."

"So he's your mind buddy now, huh?" I teased and when she nodded I said, "You're taking this awfully well."

"That's because I haven't processed it yet," She told me truthfully, "I'll freak out in a few minutes."

She looked back at me with a completely calm expression on her face, which supported her statement. I leaned against the railing one arm on it, the other shoved in my coat pocket watching the other girl with a raised eyebrow. About a minute passed before her mouth dropped open and she started yelling through my hand, as I had clamped it on her mouth as I heard the deep breath she took.

"Oh my _god_!" she squealed, "Do you think I'll be able to talk to Zexion?"

I burst out laughing, taking my hand away from her mouth to place it on my knee, laughing so hard I had to bend over. I slumped on the ground still laughing and leaned back against the side of the ship. Laughter was the best medicine or so they said. I didn't need it at the moment but it was one of those medicines that could be considered a vitamin really. I didn't need it and yet it still made me feel fantastic after having it.

"You would want to torment the poor guy wouldn't you?" I asked.

"He's probably one of the few that I would get along with."

She nodded and sat down beside me with an odd look on her face. I ran a hand through my hair glancing at her. Then I grinned as I realized what they had in common and how they would get along so well, aside from her and Demyx because of their obvious liking of music and her gentle nature coaxing Demyx's more timid nature to become something more. She was helping him and he was helping her in a way that neither of them would be able to explain.

"That is before the two of you start arguing about books and he either tricks you out of the library or you get sucked into the Lexicon and turned into a mute." I teased.

She cringed slightly before grinning. We both looked up to see the others staring at us confused and I smirked raising an eyebrow at them questioningly, twiddling my fingers in a small wave. They blinked and went back to whatever they were supposed to be doing. I glanced over at the others who were completely oblivious to our conversation as I stood up. It was a good thing they hadn't heart a word or else Twilight and I would have some explaining, or at least some major BSing, to do far too soon.

"Let's keep this between us. 'Kay?" I said quietly.

"Yeah," She said, "The others might start thinking I'm insane or something."

She nodded standing up as well. I watched as she straightened some invisible wrinkles out of her shirt and fussed over imaginary dust that coated her outfit. I assumed she just wanted something to do with her hands so she didn't have to look at me but when I didn't say anything she looked up mildly concerned. I blinked staring at her with an _'oh come on' _face. Confusion crossed her face when she recognized the look that I was giving her.

"Twilight, they probably already think you're insane," I taunted, "This would just help prove it."

She stared at me her law dropping before squawking indigently as I walked away. She knew I didn't mean it. I never did mean any of the taunts I said, aside from those directed at people I didn't like. Let's use Pete for example. He's a yellow belly coward that was such a wuss that I was sure that my grandma could pin to the ground in a minute. Granted, I was sure that my grandma couldn't handle the Heartless he hid behind like the snake he was.

"Hey!" She cried.

I laughed waving over my shoulder to her. I heard her 'harumph' but she didn't sound at all upset so I just kept walking. In fact it sounded like a noise that was trying to mask a laugh. I wondered slightly if Roxas thought I was funny and he was laughing too but I didn't want to ask. This was something she was going to have to figure out on her own. I looked up to the helm for a moment at the occupied captain and then he spotted me. I nodded, acknowledging that I knew he was watching me.

"Fire Sprite, head up to the Nest and call out when you spot land!" Jack called

"Aye-Aye Captain." I shouted back.

I saluted like a proper soldier would which made Jack give an amused smile. I climbed the rigging quickly and settled down as I knew this was going to be a long trip.

It was night before I spotted the Island. I looked down to the rest of the ship. Everyone was restless, anxiously pacing then deck or trying to busy themselves with the ropes and riggings of the already properly rigged boat, and finely tired ropes.

"Land ho!" I shouted professionally.

They looked up at me and Jack signaled me to come down. Nimbly and swiftly I left my post and climbed down quickly in a way that would make any bilge rat jealous. Never had I been so happy about my Grandfather owning a sailboat. About an hour later we were docked at the small pier at the island of death. We all walked off of the Interceptor and then Jack turned to us. There was a semi-serious look on his face as he stared at us. Sora, Donald and Goofy fell into line.

"You lads and lasses wait here. Young Turner and I will rescue the lady." Jack said.

"Hey! What about us?" Sora protested.

"You're to guard the ship, o' course. It's a task given only to the bravest of pirates." Jack calmly replied.

I rolled my eyes and put my hand to my mouth as I coughed dryly, easily masking the word; _'bullshit'_ through the fake cough. Jack glanced over at me and gave me a look of warning. Was that some sort of protective nature he had for Sora? Was he doing this to make sure the boy didn't get in trouble or to make sure Sora stayed out of the way? I didn't say anything else and Sora apparently hadn't caught it.

"All right…" Sora sighed albeit reluctantly.

"Guard her well!" Jack ordered.

Jack and Will started walking off without us. I could have groaned because of Sora's stupidity. Has he learned nothing from hanging around me? It appeared that I was really going to have to kick it up a notch before anything got through his thick skull. We watched until they disappeared into the cave and went back to the ship to wait. We waited in silence for a few minutes and didn't move from our spots.

"I think he was trying to fast-talk us…" Sora said.

"And you fell for it." Donald scolded.

Donald stomped on the deck angrily as he spoke. He was obviously mad that he wasn't in the cave and exploring it with the true pirates. Then again Donald also had a love for shiny objects like gold and jewels. I placed my hands behind my head, sitting on deck and leaning against the mast. I just stood there leaning against the mast, staring at the stars and nothing else really. The stars did look rather nice from my view point and they were very clear tonight.

"Hook, Line, and Sinker," I said, nonchalantly.

Sora looked towards the cave. He was chewing his lips slightly. The worry was evident all over his face. He looked like he wanted to burst in their, kick Heartless and pirate butt. Then drag Will, Jack and Elizabeth out and give them a stern yelling at. They had, after all, earned one with the way they were treating him like a little kid who couldn't do anything right or be useful in the slightest when he was the one who dealt with Heartless all the time.

"What's keeping those two?" Sora asked, concerned.

"They sure are taking their time…" Goofy said worriedly.

Goofy looked over at where Sora was looking and the cave just sat there looking so innocent but uninviting as ever. Worry was written in the very way he stood. He was fingering his shield, wondering if he needed to use it or not. Sora scratched his cheek as if it would help him decide what to do. As far as I knew it did nothing whatsoever except make him look even more helpless and confused than he already was.

"If Pete's hanging around; there must be Heartless here, too," Sora said. And Jack and Will aren't used to fighting Heartless…Let's go see."

"I think he just wanted to make an excuse to go on an adventure." Twilight teased.

I smiled and walked down to land. I let out a sigh before following the boys, Twilight next to me, away from the ship. Slicing down Heartless that got in our way, Heartless of which consisted mostly of Air Pirates, we headed towards the Cave Entrance. I blinked and slowed to a stop as I spotted Will and Elizabeth running towards us. Will stopped in front of us, letting Elizabeth catch her breath for a moment.

"Quick, they're after us!" Will said.

My eyes widened as I saw Pirates headed towards us, Sora apparently spotting them as well nodded. We were ready to vent some of our frustration out on some two-bit pirate scum. I realized that it would help with our anger at Jack for forcing us to stay behind. I knew that with the mood we were in at the moment…they wouldn't stand a chance and that they were walking into the end of their scummy lives of pillaging and plundering.

"We'll hold them off! Give us a sign when the ship's ready to sail!" Sora said.

"Right! We'll light a signal flare!" Will told us.

"I don't care if you blow up a canon, just get out of here!" I ordered.

I unsheathed my sword. The blade glinted dangerously in the light of the moon, making it appear like it was glowing. I was ready. I could handle whatever these pirates threw at me. I knew their fighting style as well as I knew my own. Will nodded grimly and grabbed Elizabeth's hand and the two ran off towards the ship. The Pirates stopped when they saw us waiting for them laughing. My scowl grew the longer they laughed.

"They're just a bunch of kiddies and a couple a girls." One pirate taunted.

"Hey!" Sora yelled indigently.

My eye twitched and my grip tightened on the hilt of my sword eyes watching the pirate that had taunted us. I glanced at Twilight and she had the same look of annoyance on her face but she seemed to be in more control of her anger, which was unusual. I was normally the one in control of my temper and as annoyed as I was, I was nowhere near pissed yet. That man was going down either way but what made it even better was that he didn't even know it.

"Oh, I feel kind of bad for them."

"Do ya now?" I asked.

I raised an eyebrow as I turned to her. In her eyes I could see my own reflection. I saw someone staring back at me with a dark look on her face. Twilight seemed to think over it for a moment by placing a single finger on her chin and looking to the cave's ceiling. My grip tightened on my sword before I forced myself to relax and get a grip on myself, being tense and hotheaded in a fight would put me at a disadvantage.

"Not really."

My mouth twitched into a small smile before it became a frown again. I returned my attention to the pirates as they charged us, tracking the man who taunted us. I moved forward our swords clashing together quickly before he seemed to push me back. I continued to parry the blows that the pirate sent as he jeered proclaiming this to be an easy victory. As he stepped into the moonlight I grabbed his skeletal wrist yanking him forward and slamming my sword through his neck severing his head from his spinal column. I moved back as the rest of the body fell down; I jumped back from it as it started to move around.

"Did you think it would be that easy girl? No, your other right!"

Oh the shame the head must have felt as the head taunted me again as well as trying to direct its body to the skull. I glanced at the searching body and smirked at the body as it fumbled again with a rock that it had mistaken for its head. Sure, I didn't kill the man but this form of humiliation makes me feel like all is good in the world. I walked over to the head and smirked down at it as it looked up at me defiantly.

"Fetch!" I shouted.

I kicked the skull into the pond with it yelling curses back at me all the way that were unsuitable for younger ears and something that I would try to never say, well at least not in front of impressionable ears like Sora's, until it landed in the pond with a plop. Turning to face another opponent I spotted smoke from the corner of my eye. Will was signaling us for a return to the ship. We weren't exactly running away because we could handle them. We were tactically regrouping or at least that's the way I wanted to look at it.

"Sora!" I shouted.

He looked over at me as I slid my blade through the rib cage of a skeletal pirate twisting it, so it caught on the spine and spun sending it into the lake with a gurgling last breath. It wasn't the same killing pirates over Heartless and Nobodies. It made me feel less human because I was killing humans, granted, undead humans but humans all the same. I jerked my head back towards the ship and he glanced behind him to see the smoke rising from the ship and a flare shooting up. We looked at one another and nodded in agreement.

"The signal!" He yelled.

We ran out of the cave and headed back to the ship leaving the pirates behind. As we boarded the ship Sora looked around. He frowned when he found the ship minus one harebrained eccentric Captain Jack Sparrow. He didn't seem to notice that both Twilight and I hardly seemed worried at all. We knew that he was going to be fine. He'd jump in later, save the day, miss the chance at immortality and lose the bonnie lass to the other leading man. He'd be fine.

"Where's Jack?" Sora asked.

"Well…" Will said.

Will turned to the boy and scratched his check, a very Sora-like action. I raised an eyebrow as he started to recount the tale of how he hit Jack over the head with an oar and rescued Elizabeth. I shook my head with a small smile. _'Rash, Turner, very rash.'_ I thought, _'Though, hilarious all the same.'_ I blinked as Will looked away, unable to meet Sora's eyes. He knew how much Sora looked up to Jack and it hurt him inside to have done what he did to Jack, leaving him behind like that.

"I had to. Jack's no fairy-tale pirate. The real ones aren't to be trusted." Will said.

I rolled my eyes as I thought _'And yet you trust us. You know nothing about us and you trust us and not Jack Sparrow, the absolute coolest pirate on the Caribbean.'_ I watched as Donald took the helm and I went up to the Crow's Nest to keep an eye out for the Pearl that I knew would be catching us fairly soon. Looking down I saw Twilight head into the cabin where Will and Elizabeth had disappeared into.

My mouth twitched in amusement as I remembered the conversation that Jack would be having with Barbossa, _'You'll regret introducing yourself as Captain, Jack. At least when Jones starts coming after you so you can repay your debt to the tentacle-faced bastard.'_ We had been sailing for about an hour and everyone was on deck, Will at the helm, when I saw the Pearl coming up on our port side. I looked down to the others with a somber look on my face.

"Incoming. Pearl's coming on our port side." I shouted.

"What now?" Donald asked.

"I wonder what Jack would do?" Sora said in a sort of accusing tone.

Sora crossed his arms over his chest as he glared at Will. Will placed a hand on his chin before answering but I couldn't hear him as there was a canon shot. I lurched over the railing of the Crow's Nest grabbing onto the rigging to keep from being lost at sea. I dangled there for a moment before finally finding my footing. It was a long way down and I didn't want to go splat on the deck. I'm sure nobody wanted to clean up the mess that would make, particularly Twilight.

"Everyone hit the deck!" Goofy yelled

I lost my footing again as the Interceptor shook from another canon shot. I was dangling once more. I knew I had to get down from there or else I'd be tossed over board or onto the deck and onto one of my comrades. Then there was also the threat of breaking something on the way down, impaling myself or fatally injuring myself. I had oh _so_ much to look forward to with the prospect of falling to my death.

"Easier said than done!" I shouted at Goofy.

"Ghost!"

I looked down to see Twilight looking up at me hanging there by one hand. She looked so afraid, so terrified that I knew I had to do something and quickly. I reached up with my other hand and barely managed to grasp the Nest. I swung my body to the side, hooking my foot on to the side of the Nest. I pulled myself up grunting with the effort once I regained my footing. For a moment I just sat there panting.

"Fuck!" I swore.

I didn't allow myself a very long breather as I started to head down the rigging. Twilight was watching me very worriedly from below and I could feel her staring at me as I tried to move as swiftly and nimbly as I could. I had to get down there in case the mast was going to be shot by a rogue cannonball. That wouldn't have been fun at all. Axel would kill me for getting myself in this situation. Heck, I'd kill myself if I didn't have so much to live for.

"We're just gonna have to fight!" Sora yelled.

Donald ran to the helm and turned the ship around so we could face the oncoming pirates. I was about ten feet up when we were boarded by the pirates. Glancing down I saw Sora get knocked down and drop the medallion. My eye widened as a pirate grabbed for it and I dropped down on top of him flattening the pirate and grabbed the medallion. I ducked as one of the pirates tried to take off my head. I tossed the medallion over to Sora and the pirate went after him. Running to the side slightly I caught the medallion as Sora tossed it over to me.

As the battle progressed, everyone launching a cannon ball at the Pearl when they could, this deadly game of monkey in the middle continued between me and Sora. I was standing in front of the rail and had the medallion in my possession as one of the pirates charged me. I side stepped, tossing the medallion over to Sora, and let the pirate run off the ship to fall into the sea below. It didn't take long before we had kicked the rest of the pirates off of the ship and Donald leapt up.

"Hooray!" Donald shouted.

I turned and sighed as I spotted the group behind us. I rolled my eyes as Sora placed his hands on his hips with a triumphant grin on his face that showed his delight in his conquest. Then again, it wasn't everyday that one could say they beat back a group of pirates without shame or saying it was just a game of pretend. We really did beat back a gang of ruthless pirates and heartless plunderers. I allowed myself a small grin for victory, for now.

"We beat the pirates!" Sora proclaimed.

"Well, did you now, laddie?" Barbossa said.

Twilight, Sora, and the others turned around in surprise. Delight and anger flashed across their faces. Delight because Jack was alive and standing amongst the pirates that were now surrounding us. I shifted a little uneasily as one drew too close. They were angry because well, the pirates were getting too close to us and they, being the boys, weren't sure that we would be able to beat them back. Twilight and I knew we wouldn't, not yet anyways.

"Jack!" Sora cried.

My mouth twitched into a small smile as Jack gave a nervous chuckle from where he was standing tied up. I glanced around quietly as we were surrounded by the Pearl's crew or what was left of them after we were done with the lackeys that boarded our ship earlier. Turning our attention back to Barbossa we scowled darkly. Being taken prisoner wasn't something I was actually looking forward to.

"Now then, I'll be having back that medallion…" Barbossa said, "Unless it's more important than their lives?"

I quirked an eyebrow at the Captain with a slight smirk, glancing over as Will appeared on the ship with a gun in his hands. Will tried to look rather valiant as he glared at the pirate captain with a defiant look of outrage on his face. Naturally he was going to go about negotiations all wrong but I decided to focus on that later, much later.

"Barbossa! She goes free!" Will declared.

"Yea, that's gonna do a lot of good." I muttered.

I rolled my eyes as he aimed a pistol at Barbossa. He hadn't seemed to grasp the concept of the fact that these guys wouldn't die, not unless we were the ones engaged in battle with them, which he wasn't so they wouldn't die. Twilight smiled briefly before moving to stand behind me, holding onto one of my arms. I blinked down at her. She said nothing so I said nothing. All either one of us could do was watch this scene unfold.

"Go ahead boy…shoot! We can't die." Barbossa said.

"You can't…but I can!" Will declared.

Will still pointing the pistol at Barbossa until he then whipped it around and he pointed the gun at his own head causing my eyes to widen. How very much unlike me to forget something like this. I shook my head in shame as Twilight gripped my arm even tighter. She seemed surprised. If not more than I was, by Will's sudden and highly desperate act. We had only seen this in the movies before now and so far everything had followed the script.

"That didn't happen in the game!" Twilight hissed.

"Actually it did, they edited it out of the American version." I said quietly. I chuckled as I heard her grumbling something about censors.

I kept my eyes on Will. I tuned back into the conversation as Will continued to stand there with the air of someone of great importance. At least he thought he was. Oh, yes he was so noble and honorable for sacrificing himself to pirates to saves the ones he loves which is all well and good but…there had to be another way to go about this.

"On my word, do as I say, or I'll pull this trigger and be lost to Davy Jones' Locker." Will continued.

I gave a small shudder as I recalled Jones' Locker from the third movie. I would rather die than go there. I liked my sanity very much and it was very much intact despite testimonies that some of my friends would be willing to give. Jack went partially insane there but then again he was already insane to begin with so he went even more insane than he already was. He was also strange and he was going to get even stranger as time went on so might as well as buckle in and enjoy the ride and now I'm rambling.

"Blech, the Locker isn't fun." I shuddered.

"Unless there are multiple Jacks there," Twilight said quietly.

I heard Twilight suppress a laugh as we looked at one another with looks of knowing in our eyes. I smiled quietly. Jones' Locker was still not fun place to be, as if it could ever be a natural hot spot for teenagers to hang out, nor was it on my number one must vacation spots, but it is _very_ interesting… borderline hilarious. I wasn't planning on going there anytime soon, or willingly in fact.

"Name your terms…Mr. Turner," Barbossa said.

"Release Elizabeth…and Sora, and Donald, and Goofy, Ghost and Twilight, too!" Will ordered.

"Anything else?" Barbossa asked

I raised an eyebrow as Jack tried to get Will's attention. Jack needed to be free too but I recalled that Will wasn't going to say anything on Jack's behalf so perhaps if I provided a little persuasion Will would say something for his friend/enemy. I tried to get Will's attention by hastily jerking my thumb to Jack. Will was looking right at me too. He had to have noticed that I was motioning to Jack, either that or he was staring over me.

"Jack, Jack! Don't forget Jack!" I hissed over to Will.

He apparently didn't hear me since he didn't say anything. Either that or he was ignoring me. He had better hope that I didn't find out it was the second one. I didn't like to be ignored, especially by people I considered to be my friend. Oh, well, I tried. I sent Jack a sympathetic look as I turned to face Will once more.

"Leave now!" Will said.

Jack sighed and slumped slightly. The hurt and dejection he felt was evident by the slump of his shoulders and the droop in his head. He was feeling the sting of betrayal that he was going to leave Will with on several occasions in the future, or at least in the movies. I smirked at the irony of the situation.

"Agreed. Leave we shall…" Barbossa said with a bow, "…but the Heartless stay!"

He looked up at us with a grin. We looked over as we heard Pete's rather distinct laugh to see Pete hitting Will over the head with an oar, knocking the young man unconscious and grabbing the man. Sora and the others ran over but several Air Pirate Heartless appear and Pete ran away with Will slung over his shoulder. Sora looked around at the Heartless with an angry look on his face. I shook my head.

"No fair!" Sora yelled indigently.

"Pirate." I said, amused.

I rolled my eyes at the pout on Sora's face as he turned to me. Looking around we raised our hands and the pirates bound our limbs with rope and such. I pulled my shoulder away glaring at the pirate that had pushed me into the cabin and down the stairs a couple of them throwing our confiscated weapons into a corner out of reach. I was shoved in between Twilight and Elizabeth my back against Jack's. I tried to scoot away from the pirate captain since I didn't want him touching anything he shouldn't.

"Good work, Barbossa! Who knew it'd be this easy?" Pete said

"Barbossa, you coward." Elizabeth scowled.

Elizabeth twisted so she could glare at Barbossa. Scowling wasn't going to do anything against him, just like how shooting him when he was still cursed wasn't going to do anything. I shook my head and sighed in exasperation. These people were going to drive me up a wall one of these days and I was going to be marked just as insane as they were. Barbossa laughed as my hands were busy groping for my Bowie.

"That's the last time I trust a pirate!" Sora declared.

"The powder kegs are ready, Captain!" A pirate shouted.

"Then I bid ye farewell!" Barbossa said.

Barbossa glanced up at him before bowing to us mockingly. Oh, how I wanted to get my hands on him, he deserved to be killed in one of the most painful ways possible. I would just have to think of one. The ones facing the door could only watch as the Pete and Barbossa left, heading up the stairs to get off of the Interceptor. I shrugged my shoulders slightly and frowned in frustration, growling under my breath, as I wasn't at a good angle to unsheathe my blade. Reluctantly reaching back I searched blindly for Jack's hands.

"What are we gonna do?" Donald yelled.

I knew that I had to get my blade into his hand so he could cut us free. He was the only one in the position to do so. I found them and lead them to the hilt of my blade. Jack obviously confused hesitated for a moment before feeling the familiar feel of a hilt beneath his fingers. If he could he would have been giving me a strange look but then he realized what I wanted him to do. I could almost feel the heat of his smirk.

"We'll be blown to smithereens!" Goofy cried.

I felt the blade unsheathe the familiar weight lessening as Jack shrugged his shoulders, a very subtle movement so the others didn't know what he was doing. I knew he was going to take all of the credit for himself but oh, well, life goes on. I smiled to myself, knowing that he would cut the ropes and help us make a valiant and very dashing escape from death in a way that only he could manage. We would live and the story would go on, like it was supposed to.

"Why struggle, mate? A pirate knows when to surrender." Jack said.

Sora glanced over at the pirate in shock as if the man had lost his mind. Even if Sora swore off pirates for good it still didn't mean he didn't hold Jack in high regard. The two of them were just too similar to even think about them hating one another, plus we get to tease them about it later. I was almost looking forward to coming back, aside from the part where Jack was cursed and then we had to fight Luxord's enormous Heartless boss that was semi-annoying when you fought it in the game.

"Are you serious, Jack?" Sora asked in shock.

"Your average pirate, anyway." Jack said.

He stood up my bowie in his hands while I crouched slightly getting my hands behind my knees, rolling onto my back I slipped my legs through my arms and stood up, heading over to the weapons that the pirates had stupidly tossed in a corner. Everyone waited as Jack cut their bonds so that they could gather their things and prepare for the battle that lay waiting outside. Then I remembered the gunpowder. If we didn't hurry the ship was going to go up in smoke. This wasn't a game anymore. Twilight, me, everyone, we could really die here. There was no restart button.

"First, we've got to see to the gunpowder. I'm not about to lose this ship!" Jack said

"I still don't plan to trust pirates again." Sora said.

"Wise policy, lad," Jack agreed.

I just rolled my eyes as Jack moved from person to person cutting their bonds. I unsheathed my sword slamming it into the deck so that it would stand the point digging into the wood. I wrapped my arms over it and cut the ropes as Jack was finishing the last one. I grabbed my sword twisting it out of the deck, tossed Twilight her saber, and reached over for my knife. Jack looked at the blade for a second before handing it to me. I took it back rather quickly, nearly nicking him with the blade.

"That's a good blade there. You've got a good eye for steel there, Fire Sprite." Jack complimented.

"I can't help myself. I like blades. But isn't there a more pressing issue right now?" I said.

I grinned sheathing the blade back behind my back. We all ran up to the deck quickly glancing up I saw that there was some up by the helm. Twilight and I were already running towards the stairs. She seemed to just have realized that this wasn't a game either. This was life or death now and there was no way we were going to let it end this soon. Besides, we still had so much to do before we actually kicked the bucket and as much as I liked the Underworld, Hades' hospitality was sucking at the moment so I didn't want to go back anytime soon.

"You take care of the ones down here, Twilight help me with the kegs up there!" I yelled to Sora.

She looked over at me as I ran up to the helm quickly following me. I put my shoulder up against one and shoved, scrambling for a good purchase on the ground, straining for what felt like a minute I finally was able to push it over the side. I looked over at Twilight she almost had it off but it was going to be close. I ran over and slammed my shoulder into the side of the keg with a grunt and she glanced over at me for a second as we managed to push it over the edge. I wiped my brow as Sora looked around.

"All clear!" Sora said.

"That's the second time I've had to watch that man sail away with my ship," Jack hissed, "But I'll be havin' her back soon enough."

Jack ran over to the helm holding onto the wheel angrily. He glanced over at me. There was a sort of fire dancing in his eyes that would have made him worthy of the nickname he dubbed me with. He was the worst kind of man of them all, a man on a mission. He was determined to have the Pearl back, even if it was the last thing he would ever do but luckily it wasn't going to be… Well, not until the foul beasty is set upon him.

"Alright Fire Sprite you know your post."

I nodded and headed up to the Crow's Nest. We weren't far from the island so it only took us about an hour or so to get back. As I left the ship Jack turned to Elizabeth, Twilight, and I. I shook my head, knowing exactly what he was planning on tell us. He was so naïve if he believed that Twilight and I would honestly let Sora, Donald and Goofy out of our sights. The three of them were more trouble than they were worth.

"You three stay with the ship!" Jack ordered.

"I'll do no such thing! Will could die in there." Elizabeth protested.

I gave Twilight a small smile before turning as Elizabeth shook her head violently. Jack waved his hands at the woman. I like seeing people get manipulated by Jack because he does it in the most unlikely of ways but there really should be a limit. I appreciated the protection but it was really not needed.

"Dear William is fine. Trust me." Jack said.

"I am not a fool, Jack." Elizabeth snorted.

"Then trust me instead!" Sora said.

"Sora, Donald, Goofy… bring Will back safely!" Elizabeth said.

She back up slightly and allowed them to leave her behind, because she trusted them over Jack, which was still a very wise thing to do since Jack was a true pirate an all. They nodded and turned the four of them running off. Twilight turned to me her mouth dropping open as she stared at me with clear disbelief, even Elizabeth turned to look at me with a mild look of surprise in her eyes. I smiled at her sweetly.

"I didn't think you would take Jack's orders without protesting at least a little." Elizabeth said.

"Whoever said that I was listening to him? I was just waiting for the most opportune moment." I said.

I gave an evil grin before glancing at her with a cocky smirk. I looked back at where the boys had headed. I sighed and motioned for Twilight to follow me. She smirked and put a hand on her weapon. We were both going to go. As Kairi was going to say in the future to Riku, _'You know he's completely hopeless without us.'_ And he was. It was a shame that he just couldn't prove that he could do these sort of things.

"C'mon Twilight. We better go and make sure they don't go screw up and die." I said.

She chuckled before joining me as I ran towards the entrance leaving Elizabeth behind. We caught up to them as they were having trouble getting through the Powder Store. Jack was facing one as I came up behind him they turned so that the undead pirate's back was to me and out of the moonlight. My leg slammed into his side and sent him into the pond that was outside. The pirates fell quickly after that, Twilight and I having the element of surprise on our side, and as soon as they were all gone Jack came over to me and Twilight with a look of utter outrage on his face.

"I thought I told the two of ye to stay on the ship." Jack said angrily.

"Yeah, like I was really gonna listen to that." I retorted.

I placed a hand on my hip. The two of us got into a glaring contest for a moment and the others watched nervously, before the two of us both smirked and chuckled. In some ways we were too much alike. The others gave a sigh of relief and we started moving on to the Treasure Heap. I smirked as I heard the pirates cheering as we ran in.

"Ahoy! Treasure, mateys!" Sora yelled.

I smirked as I slowed to stop right next to Sora, in front of Twilight. That was kind of funny, plus the look on Barbossa's face made it all the sweeter. He looked horrified to say the least. He didn't expect us to survive our little trip with his Heartless.

"Not possible." Barbossa said in shock.

"Not probable! We're alive and we're pirates!" Donald said.

I frowned. I didn't exactly understand what being a pirate had to do with staying alive. If anything the word pirate was just a fancy title so we had something to call the plunderers and murdering scum by. I smiled as I remembered,_ 'A rose called by any other name was still a rose'_. Looks like those AP English classes back in high school actually paid off for once. "Captain Jack Sparrow!" Jack announced.

My eye twitched as Jack moved forward. Sora copied his actions, striking a dashing pose. One that even Kent Clark might have been envious of but granted Kent Clark wasn't exactly real, or was he? If Kingdom Hearts was real did that mean that all of the fictional stories that had ever been made was real too? If that were true a lot of fangirls would have been very, very happy. But then I shook my head, knowing that the others were only going to follow Jack and Sora in suit.

"Sora!"

"Donald Duck!"

"Twilight!"

Twilight moved forward, placing her hands on her hips. A triumphant grin was on her face and her eyes burned with determination. Goofy moved forward waving slightly – a more friendly approach than heroic if I had to comment on it. I shook my head again. I was right, as I knew I was going to be. Sometimes I do hate it when I'm right.

"Goofy, too."

My eye twitched again and Twilight looked over at me as if expecting me to jump in at any time. I just shook my head. I'm sure my expression read something like, _'Oh hell no!'_ There was no way that I was going to jump in like that.

"You people are idiots sometimes." I said.

"So you want to play pirate? Best save the playacting for the nursery. After them!"

Barbossa pointed at all of us. I rolled my eyes as the pirates came after us. I backed up so that if they wanted to attack me they had to come into the moonlight. I moved over to Jack as he parried one of the pirates attack dropping down I swept the pirate's feet out from under him. The skeleton landed on his back my blade going through his skull. I looked over at Jack.

"You do what you need to do. I'll watch your back till then." I told Jack.

He blinked at me for a moment before charging towards Barbossa. I kept close to him until two undead pirates attacked us from both sides. I swept my sword up blocking one of them as I parried the one on my left with my bowie that I had unsheathed from behind me. Jack glanced back and hesitated until I forced the pirate on my right to stumble back.

"Go! I'm fine!" I yelled.

I twisted sweeping my blade into the pirate I was holding off with my bowie knocking him back, continuing the twist I swept the feet out from under the pirate on my left who was charging me again. The bowie clanged together with the sword of the pirate I had simply knocked away. I grunted slightly as he pushed down, glancing back I saw that the other pirate had gotten up and was running towards me, his sword held high.

There was a loud crack as a Thunder spell ripped through bones of the skeleton I was holding off, I twisted slicing through the pirate that was coming up behind me. As that pirate fell I looked around to see Twilight standing nearby lightening sparking around her hand. Jogging over to her I nodded my thanks and looked around for more enemies.

"Thanks." I said

"No more playacting now!" Sora said.

Will ran over to the Sora's side rather quickly. We joined the two of them just moments after because Will had a bit of a head start on us. Twilight and I stopped so that we were a good foot or so away from Sora and Will. We didn't want to stand too close in case there was something that we hadn't taken care of yet.

"Thank you, Sora!" Will said.

"Uh, where's Jack?" Goofy asked.

I smiled as I watched Goofy looked around with a look of concern on his face. I jerked my thumb over to the two captains and their fight to the 'death'. I nearly laughed at the irony because the curse was going to be lifted soon. Barbossa would 'die' and then come back. After time has worn away the shock of his return we'd find out he was a semi-good guy who still had semi-bad intentions since he was a pirate. They weren't black or white like most people thought they were. They were a lovely shade of gray. They did what they did out of pure self interest.

"Taking care of some unfinished business." I said.

They looked at me than towards the two dueling captains as their swords clashing together echoed throughout the cave. I nonchalantly leaned up against the wall as I watched the sword fight. There was really no point in intervening yet, particularly since the Heartless hadn't shown up yet and Pete wasn't dirtying the place up with his presence. Sora jerked forward cheering Jack.

"Jack! Get him!" Sora cheered.

"Huh?"

Distracted Jack looked over to us, taking his eyes off of Barbossa completely. My eyes widened when I realized what was going to happen next. I could have slapped the man for the sheer stupidity, even if he did do what I thought he did. I took a step forward, reaching out to Jack while Twilight covered her mouth in horror. She pointed at Barbossa, trying to redirect Jack's attention to the pirate that he was fighting.

"Look out!" Twilight and I yelled.

He turned to look over at Barbossa as the other man plunged his sword into his chest. Sora, upon seeing this, gasped in horror. Twilight sighed in exasperation as she looked on with slight discomfort. I slapped a palm to my forehead. Honestly, Jack could be so thick sometimes. He didn't seem to realize that Sora looked up to him and seeing him run through was going to have a really negative effect on Sora for a long time.

"Jack!" Sora yelled.

"And that Sora… is why you keep your eyes front." I muttered.

"Jack he's just… and you…!"

He looked over at me his mouth dropping open in disbelief. He was being rather articulate today, don't you agree? Then again it wasn't everyday that you saw a person get run through. I had to admit it was different watching it in real life versus the movies and the games. If I didn't know what was going to happen I might have actually have been worried for Jack. I smiled slightly and motioned back to the pirates before us.

"Just watch." I responded.

"You're a fool, Jack Sparrow." Barbossa taunted.

Sora turned back to Barbossa. Jack stumbled back into the moonlight to be revealed as a skeleton much to the surprise of everyone, other than Twilight and I. He held up a bony hand, examining it before holding up his other hand. It was definitely odd seeing Jack all bone-like in real life than games or movies. He looked like something a Zombie movie producer would kill to have in any of his/her films.

"Well that's interesting," Jack commented, as if talking about weather.

He was rolling one of the gold coins on his knuckles giving a cheeky smile to the captain in front of him. I grinned as I watched him play with the coin like a toy. To Jack, a toy was probably what the money was in his eyes. I almost missed the wink that he sent me as he continued to play with the coin in his hand.

"I couldn't resist mate." Jack said.

"Jack…" Will murmured.

"Show yourself, Pete! The tide has changed." Barbossa barked.

I blinked as Pete randomly appeared out of nowhere. The creature that was Pete placed his hands on his hips and looked at Barbossa as if to say, _'I told you so!'_ I just shrugged. So that's where he was hiding. I thought I smelled him somewhere nearby. However, the smug look on Pete's face was bothering me but I'd beat him up later so it didn't matter.

"See? I told ya you'd be needin' ol' Pete!" Pete said gleefully.

He gave a high pitched whistle and the Illuminator Heartless appeared and jumped on the walls until it was behind Barbossa. We glanced up as the Illuminator floated above the chest before it went pitch black. I could see enough to grab Twilight as the others ran forward. She at first looked afraid but then she realized it was just me and not someone else.

"We'll go after the Heartless let them deal with Barbossa." I told her.

"Right."

She nodded in agreement. She started looking around scanning the walls before pointing towards the opposite wall. The little devil was still pretty hard to spot. Sure enough, where she was pointing the creature was there, clinging to the walls and watching us through big yellow eyes. I drew my sword and took a deep breath. The darkness around us was actually calming to me and Twilight looked at complete unease as she began to move forward.

"There!"

We ran over quickly and dispatched the lizard-like heartless bringing light back into the cave. I glanced over as the boys instantly found Barbossa and started wailing on him. As darkness descended once again in the cave Twilight and I searched for the Heartless quickly, we could hear Sora and the others getting attacked by Barbossa. This time I was the one to spot the glowing eyes on the wall where the fighting was coming from. Twilight skirted the mound where the chest was while I ran up it. Using Barbossa's head as a spring board I jumped out of his range and hit the Heartless.

I grunted and jerked forward as Barbossa shot me before he was distracted by the others. Twilight ran over to me concerned conjuring up a Cure spell that I waved off. Reaching behind me I gripped the hilt of my bowie and brought sheathe and all to the front. Shaking it slightly the bullet fell off of the metal sheathe with a slight clink leaving only a small dent in the black steel sheathe. By the time we looked up again Pete was backing away from Will, Sora, Donald, and Goofy looking extremely concerned for his well-being.

"This ain't over!" Pete declared.

"He's a broken record, says something_ 'threatening' _and then runs away." I said.

I sighed and rolled my eyes as we watched him run off once more. _'Coward!_' I screamed on the inside. I placed my bowie back behind my back, knowing we wouldn't need to worry about fighting for now, sheathing my sword after a moment. Both Twilight and I turned as Jack said to Barbossa. The captain was kneeling slightly and panting to catch his breath.

"Right! Care to surrender, Barbossa?" Jack asked.

The man stood up and drew his sword. He was intending to fight for the rest of his immortality over a battle that neither he nor Jack would lose because they were immortal and well, already dead. That would really suck, especially since Jack didn't exactly seem like the type to stick around for long and fight for eternity. Jack sighed and slumped. He looked like he was fed-up with everything and he was having a very, very bad day.

"Well, enough of this, then…" Jack said.

Jack threw down his sword and surprised, Barbossa straightened up out of his defensive crouch. Though as he did this Jack drew out his pistol and aimed it at the man. If it were shot the bullet would have gone straight through Barbossa's heart. It was a shot that if he weren't immortal and such would kill him almost instantly but very painfully.

"What say you we call it…a draw?" Jack asked.

"Jack, how many times do I have to tell ya…?" Barbossa said.

Barbossa held his arms open before pointing his sword at Jack. Jack tossed the medallion and shot Barbossa with the only shot he had left, the only shot that had ever been in the gun and a shot which was given to him by Barbossa himself on the day that he abandoned Jack on an island as he sailed away with Jack's ship. I watched calmly as Barbossa laughed.

"Laugh while you can, Barbossa!" Will said.

The man turned in surprise and stared up at Will as he dropped the two bloody medallions into the chest. I smirked as I realized the curse was lifted and Barbossa could die once again like a normal person should. I turned to look at the captain just as Barbossa jerked down, clutching at his chest, straightening momentarily.

"I feel… cold." Barbossa murmured.

He fell down as we watched, my jaw clenching and Twilight turning and burying her head into my shoulder with a whimper. I patted her head gently as she clutched at my arm. She hadn't ever seen someone die before. Killing Heartless and Nobodies were different but human creatures? I don't think she'd ever have the heart to fight a human with the intent to kill. I turned her as everyone started walking out of the cave.

"What now, Jack?" Will asked.

It wasn't until we had almost reached the Interceptor that Will suddenly stopped in his tracks. Jack stopped and turned to look at him with a satisfied smirk. Jack had all of his dreams – for the moment – come true because he enlisted the help of Sora and the rest of us. Granted, he and Will would have done fine and dandy on their own. It was just more fun to think that we played a part in helping this come true.

"Whatever I want, now that the Pearl is mine again." Jack answered.

The two men turn and look at the ship for a moment. It sat ever so innocently on the water. It didn't even look like it was a dark pirate ship used for pillaging, plundering, arson and attacks led on different communities across the pirating world. It looked better, lighter, and more welcoming now that I knew that Jack was the owner of the lovely ship. Will turned back to Jack, nodded his approval in the matter.

"That she is. Thank you, Jack." Will said.

My eyes widened as Jack flinched and covered his head as Will held out his hand. Then I remembered how in the movies Jack had been knocked out by Will when Jack told him to wait for the opportune moment to save Elizabeth. Will had other plans in the movie. He wanted to dash in, save the damsel and save the day like any protagonist did in every good story. Jack was an anti-hero. Sometimes he could be a protagonist and other times he was the antagonist.

"I didn't want ye hittin' me again, mate." The dreadlocked pirate explained as he straightened up.

He turned to the rest of us with a smirk on his lips. As much as I hate him hitting on me every chance that he got I was still going to miss the dreadlocked pirate greatly. He was one of those people that just grow on you. You hate them to pieces at first but then you grow so attached. But I was sure I was going to be fine once I saw Axel again. I was going to use Jack to make him jealous, perhaps. It was fun, seeing Axel jealous, flustered,…acting like someone with a heart or the teenagers/early twenties person he was supposed to be.

"Hey, Jack… good luck." Sora said.

"And remember to be good!" Donald continued

"Well, that's no fun." I said

I glanced down at the duck smirking. He looked up at me confused as Twilight gave a small laugh. Jack nodded his head, agreeing with my sentiments over the matter of being good. Causing a little trouble here and there never hurt anyone and besides, we all know that Jack was one of those guys who could never stay out of trouble, even to save his own life. Trouble seemed to find him first. Jack pointed at us and backed away.

"I'm off." Jack said.

I glanced over as Elizabeth ran past Jack, who had his arms open for a hug, and into Will's arms with a relieved cry. I let out a low chuckle. _'Rejected, Jack,'_ I thought in amusement. I watched as Jack walked off before looking over at the reunited couple as Sora placed his hands behind his head. Jack looked genuinely happy for them and a little disappointed at the same time.

"Good for them." Sora said.

"Uh-huh!" Goofy agreed.

"Aww." Twilight sighed.

"Hey, Sora… how come your face is all red?" Goofy asked innocently.

Goofy turned to look at the brunet, causing all of us to look at him. Twilight and I laughed as Sora covered his face with a hand. He was trying to hide his now quite rosy cheeks through his gloved fingers. He didn't want to give Donald more material to tease him with, especially after Sora only just found out about Donald's love for Daisy.

"What? It is not red!" Sora protested.

"Aw, I know who you're thinking about." Donald teased.

Donald placed his hands on his hips and stared up at the boy. The other two joined in on our laughter as the boy covered his face embarrassed. There was a flash that caught everyone's attention from Jack's compass who jerked back surprised. Holding it at arm's length he flicked the cover open and brought it closer to his face before it started to float up into the air. I stood back as Sora prepared to unlock the next gate. There was a flash of light from both himself and Twilight and just as suddenly as the light had built up, it died down.

"You know…for a minute there…" Sora said, seriously, then jokingly added, "I was afraid we were gonna lose Donald to the curse of the treasure!"

Sora let the Keyblade vanish and turned towards Donald with an amused smile. Goofy held up a hand agreeing with Sora. Twilight followed the motion, thrusting her hand up in the air as she agreed. When she noticed my hand wasn't up she grabbed my hand and put it up in the air so that I was agreeing too. I smiled and pulled my hand back but kept it in the air for the sake of ruffling Donald's feathers a little bit.

"Yup. Me, too." Goofy agreed.

"What?" Donald yelled.

Sora and Goofy jerked back in surprise upon the outcry. Both Twilight and I laughed at the three boys. We all walked off but I stopped as Jack caught onto one of Twilight's and my own arms, stopping us dead in our tracks. I tilted my head curious, as Twilight looked like she was about to hit him. Jack looked between the two of us.

"The two of ye could stay here, I think ye would make fine pirates." Jack said.

"Coming from you," I teased, "That's _quite_ the compliment but I think I am disinclined to acquiesce to your request."

I smirked and slipped out of his grasp with perfect ease since he wasn't exactly holding me tightly. He looked at me confused for a moment as I tugged Twilight towards the boys but when I glanced back at him he was smirking and shaking his head. He should have known that I was going to give him lip until the very end, even if I was actually somewhat flattered by the offer. I gave a small laugh and Twilight looked over at me questioningly. I was going to have so much fun when I came back here.

"What?" Twilight asked.

"I think I'm going to enjoy messing with that man's head when we come back." I answered with a smile.

She blinked and then laughed as we reached the boys. We teleported up to the gummi ship and I sat in my seat bringing the game Donald and I had been playing back up as the duck sat across from me. I smiled at him as I leaned back into my seat to get comfortable.

"So, where to next?" I asked Donald.


	19. Stupid Deserts

Hi again, well fanfic was stupid and didn't let me update when I wanted to. It also didn't save. T_T Which means that I have lost the long list of individual shout outs. So THANK YOU EVERYONE WHO READ, REVIEWED, and ADDED. You guys are the best.

Disclaimer: Me no ownie. Finals over. Grammar dead.

* * *

Chapter 19: Stupid deserts

It was morning by the time we reached Agrabah and the sun was already high in the sky. I glared at the sky the best I could without burning my eyes out of my head. It hurt too much to keep my eyes open for long and the sand was already starting to irritate my skin. The humidity was going to kill me by the time I got within the city walls.

"Stupid evil light. Stupid desert. Glad I tan and don't burn mostly." I muttered darkly.

I tossed my jacket back onto the gummi ship, Twilight tossed hers up next to mine and I glanced over at her and her pale skin. '_Man, she's is going to burn easily but in this heat but I don't blame her for wanting to get rid of her coat._' I thought as I watched as Sora walked past us as if there was nothing wrong. '_Ok I get that he was from Islands but does he not feel heat or cold or something… I mean he's in __black__! C'mon black absorbs light he should be really hot not perfectly fine.'_ I mentally complained when I followed him as the group went through a doorway type thing heading further into the city.

Donald was the first to emerge from the shadows of the doorway. He winced slightly as his bare flat foot stepped onto the hot sand but then walked off the ship as if it were nothing. I shook my head, wondering slightly to myself how he did it. Even I was starting to sweat and we had just got here. How do the locals do survive since it's so darn hot? I knew that Axel would love the place, if only for the temperature.

"Agrabah! We made it!" Donald said.

I pulled down my sunglasses so that they did what they were meant to, instead of acting as a sort of headband, as the rest of us walked out into the open. At any moment I was expecting Goofy to start panting or for Donald to insist that one of us should carry him since he had no shoes. I sighed and turned to face the wall. The doors to the city seemed even bigger when you were actually standing outside them than looking at them in the game.

"Gawrsh, I wonder how Aladdin 'n' Jasmine are doin'?" Goofy mused.

"Hey, maybe Riku's with them!" Sora said hopefully.

"Yeah, and the King!" Goofy agreed heartily.

I looked up as I heard the flutter of wings to see a red parrot flying towards us. I allowed a small smirk to cross my lips. Not even two minutes and the battle was about to start again. The work of a hero was never truly finished. Looks like we wouldn't be able to soak up some sun while we were here but I had a good feeling we would soak up sun anyways, just not in a relaxing way. Donald walked beside Sora and looked up at the boy with an exasperated look on his face that seemed to disagree with his posture.

"Keep dreaming, you two." Donald said.

Sora looked down at the duck with a smirk of his own. Sora seemed to already have Donald's number. He knew that Donald had been thinking the same thing just moments before, although, Donald would deny it to the very end. He didn't want to be seen as a dreamer and have his hopes crushed like they had been over the many worlds they had been to.

"C'mon, Donald, you were thinking the same thing." Sora said.

I laughed heartily. Twilight was laughing too. She wasn't trying to be discrete about it. My eye caught Sora's. He was trying not to laugh too. There was a smile tugging at his lips while mischief danced in his eyes. He just enjoyed teasing Donald too much. He was going to feel partially empty inside when he went back home and there wasn't anyone to tease as freely as he teased Donald. Maybe he'll find sport in Tidus or Wakka.

"No, I wasn't!" The duck yelled indigently.

I saw Goofy glance back and looked behind me to see the brightly colored parrot still following us. I tilted my head and narrowed my eyes as I watched as it circled around Goofy who stopped as the others walked on ahead. I didn't say anything to him since I wasn't supposed to know Iago. I just pretended to watch with mild interest. Twilight looked over her shoulder to notice that I was watching Iago.

"Uh-oh, it's uh…um…" he said.

I rolled my eyes thinking, '_C'mon you could've at least remembered his name.' _Goofy sat there for almost an entire minute. I was close to just yelling Iago's name out for the sake of getting things moving but I held my tongue. But let me tell you it was harder than you would think it was. Goofy thumped a fist on his palm as he finally remembered the bird's name.

"It's Iago!" Goofy cried.

The other two boys whipped around with their weapons drawn while Twilight just blinked as she watched them. Neither of us moved for our weapons. We knew Iago was good, if a bit of a coward at times he was still a pretty good guy, though the term guy is being used lightly. The parrot flew over to them with a panicked look on his face.

"Wait! You got me all wrong." The bird cried desperately.

Donald waved his wand at the bird. He was ready to cast a spell at any moment. Twilight tensed and probably would have jumped in front of the bird if we didn't know Donald so well. He never attacked someone without reason. Iago had given no reason as of yet. Sora was ready for a fight too but he was very trusting. If Iago was going to attack then he wouldn't have given them a fair warning.

"You're Iago all right!" Donald said accusingly.

"No! I mean, it's not the old me. I turned over a new feather." The bird yelled, "I'm legit! No more scams. Promise!"

Sora banished his Keyblade and crossed his arms. He narrowed his eyes as he looked at the bird. Sora may have been naïve and he may have been a bit too trustworthy but that trait in him was rather honorable. There were very few people who could live life like he could and I commended him for it, especially after everything that he had gone through. He practically had to fight tooth and nail just to get anywhere near living his normal life, which he won't do for most likely a very, very long time.

"Bet that's your new scam." Sora muttered cynically

I raised an eyebrow at the boy. It was definitely showing that I was rubbing off on the kid…but maybe not so much for the better. The last thing we needed was a Sora that was sarcastic and dark like me. Riku and Kairi also might have conniption fits if I completely corrupted his innocent and sweet image. I nearly started laughing at the thought. It would take a lot more than just me to taint Sora's record though.

"You gotta believe me!" Iago yelled.

"Sora, let's go!" Donald insisted.

Donald looked up at the boy. The duck looked rather insistent over the matter but Sora was showing some hesitance. See, I'm not completely corrupting him. Just slightly! But that wasn't the point, in fact, I'm digressing. The bird fluttered over to the stairs saying along the way. He looked rather sad, I mean, as far as facial expressions for parrots go. His voice was a dead giveaway though. He couldn't seem to keep emotions out of it.

"I was stuck in that lamp with Jafar. Remember?" Iago explained, "Well, I finally escaped. But then some things happened and…"

"So. Free as a bird, huh?" Sora said sarcastically.

He landed on the stairs and drooped. Dejection was written from the way he stood, er, sat or should I say perched? Neither Sora nor Donald seemed to care about Iago's emotional wellbeing. I could understand why but grudges only caused trouble in the end. Donald turned to start walking away but then he turned over his shoulder, cupping his beak so that what he could say would be heard even though Iago wasn't that far away from us.

"Have fun!" Donald said darkly.

The three of us had finally walked over so we could enter the conversation and it was Goofy who seemed to linger behind. He didn't want to leave Iago, out in the hot desert, all alone, especially when he had come to us for help. Goofy's heart really was too big for him sometimes. But nevertheless, Twilight and I were going to back him up. For as much trouble as Iago caused, or will cause, he wasn't _that_ bad after all.

"Gawrsh, fellas. He looks pretty sad." Goofy said sympathetically.

Hearing a kind voice Iago flew over to Goofy who held his hands out so the bird could land. It seems that Iago knew who to go to if he wanted allies. I was tempted to say he was using Goofy's good nature to his own personal gain but Iago, however manipulative he was, was rather important to what was going to happen. I couldn't very well just start accusing the bird of things either. What kind of person would I have been if I did?

"I wanna apologize to Aladdin and Jasmine. Could you guys maybe put in a good word for me?" Iago asked.

"Sure, we can do that, can't we?" Goofy asked.

Goofy turned to the others with a grin. The others stared at him incredulously while Twilight and I laughed quietly, trying not to draw too much attention to ourselves. We couldn't help it. Sora looked at Goofy like someone told him that Sephiroth was his father or something as equally ridiculous. My eyes narrowed and I glanced behind me a second before Iago leapt out of Goofy's hands. I had almost forgotten about this part.

"Watch out!" Iago cried.

I sighed as we were surrounded by the Luna Bandit Heartless, my sword appearing in my hand. The Heartless charged us and I blocked one sword and sidestepped another. Stepping on the Heartless's cape it jerked back, my sword going through its neck making it disappear. Yet for every Heartless that was defeated another one seemed to take its place. The five of us had ended up back to back. We were running out of room.

"Where are they all coming from?" Sora asked.

I blinked as I heard Iago yell in alarm. I turned, to see if something was attacking him but he tipped the crate he had been by which caused the shattering of pottery. The resounding crash of a crate was glorious as it landed on some of the Heartless, easily taking them out for us. I grinned. It seemed that even klutziness could help in the battle field too. Seeing an opening Sora looked back at us. There was a wild and slightly frightened look in his eyes.

"This way!" Sora said.

We took off running down a side street Iago following behind us. Looking around at the ragged shop that we had entered I sighed and turned back to Goofy. The shop wasn't that interesting anyways, particularly since it smelled horrible and the wares weren't exactly top notch. Twilight seemed to share my sentiments and she edged away from a tattered tapestry that smelled like something died on it. I didn't want to check to see if my suspicion was correct though I had a feeling it was.

"Aw, we'd've been goners if Iago hadn't helped us. Ain't that right, fellas?" Goofy said.

"I guess we owe you one." Sora said.

Sora scratched the back of his head. He didn't look like he wanted to admit it but he knew when to fight his battles and went to just let them go. Donald, however, did not look as forgiving as Sora did but then again Donald never was. It was why he and Sora butted heads so many times. But hey, what are you going to do about it? The bird excitedly jumped into the air obviously delighted by his good fortune.

"Perfect!" Iago cried.

Sora wagged a finger at the excited bird. I laughed, unable to help myself since the situation called for it. He looked like a father scolding an overly excited child. The idea of Sora being a father was slightly scary, but I was sure that he would mature… Maybe… Possibly… Not really… Oh, well. We'd just have to look forward to miniature Sora clones running around the place, just as optimistic and easy going as Sora was.

"But you'll have to win over Aladdin and Jasmine yourself. Be on your best behavior, got it?" Sora said, sternly.

"Yeah, I got it." Iago said enthusiastically.

Goofy looked around. He was obviously as unimpressed by the small shop as I was. I couldn't wait until it changed when we came back. Perhaps the smell would improve. Then again the games never really did cover the sense of smell, or touch and taste for that matter. Games were completely different from real life. It was a crying shame too. I doubt that if I were back home I would get to have this much fun, all considering I was the sane one in our group.

"Where _is_ Aladdin, anyway?"Goofy asked.

"I betcha he's at the palace." Iago said.

Iago flew over to Goofy. I had a hunch it was because he knew that Goofy warmed up to him first over Donald or Sora. He hadn't even so much as given Twilight or I a second glance. I doubted it was because he hadn't noticed us yet but I just shrugged and let it go. It wasn't the first time a character tried to ignore me and I doubted it was going to be the last, particularly since I knew later on I was bound to be ignored by one of the Organization members. If I had to put down money it would have been Saix. He was a bit of a prick…ok a bit more than a prick but that's just my opinion. Sora nodded, agreeing to go along with Iago's plan.

"Then let's go!" Sora said.

I watched amused as Sora stuck his head out looking for an ambush before heading out with the rest of us following him. Taking out the occasional Heartless we eventually made it to the palace, Twilight giving a small whistle when we spotted the building, spotting someone standing in front of a couple of very large doors. It was a very impressive place. Sora walked up to the dark haired woman.

"Jasmine!" Sora said.

She turned and smiled when she saw who it was. Obvious delight was on her face. She looked happy, very much at ease. I didn't know how she managed with her clothes that offered so little protection but she seemed fine. Perhaps she was just used to the weather but it was probably also why her shirt showed her belly. It was smoldering hot, especially by the castle wall. I just wanted to get a drink of water sooner or later or I'd croak. Axel and Twilight would probably not be too happy with that.

"Sora! Donald! Goofy!" She exclaimed.

Donald bowed low and the others followed his gesture until it got to me as I just waved at her. She didn't seem to mind that I didn't bow to her like the others did. If I were a princess I wouldn't want anyone to bow to me. I'd hate to have my friends treat me as if I were better than them. Bowing just seemed rather odd to me, not at all like a gesture of respect. It felt more like we were forced to do something nice for someone.

"Your Majesty." Donald said.

The girl giggled at the boys' actions saying as they straightened up. I smirked and shook my head at them, in a sort of exasperated way. They weren't going to change anytime soon, aside from Sora's now growing cynical side. That wasn't entirely my fault. The Nobodies were partially to blame too, particularly Saix and Xemnas. Now those two were just rotten news and I really didn't have to go into detail about them, particularly Xemnas.

"I never got a chance to thank you for before," Jasmine said sincerely, "You helped Aladdin defeat that awful Jafar and saved Agrabah."

Sora placed his hands behind his head saying with a smile, his trademark look. It took a lot for me not to sigh and then whack him upside the back of the head. It appeared that we were going to have to work on his modesty skills. They were very poor. He was far too cocky for his own good and he would get his face bashed in because of it. A hero was supposed to be modest but I suppose that's why they were still only Junior Heroes in Phil's eyes back in the Underworld. I just shrugged it off.

"All in a day's work. Oh, this is Twilight and Ghost." Sora said offhandedly.

I nodded at the girl with a smile and Twilight waved enthusiastically a gigantic smile on her face. Jasmine smiled. It was hard not to like Twilight. But me, on the other hand, well, people said I came off as cynical and very dark. I suppose that's why I could use Darkness so well. My standoffish nature kept people at an arm's length. I didn't want to get hurt so I kept people away from my shell. The less I trusted the less I got hurt. Conversely, though this meant that once I considered you a friend, unless you did something really bad, you were a friend for life.

"But uh… it looks like the Heartless are up to no good again. Is there any way we can help you out?" Sora asked.

"I think we're all right for now." Jasmine said.

Jasmine shook her head slightly, disagreeing with Sora's assessment over her home. I could digress. There were Heartless everywhere but she had to have been pretty confident that everything was being taken care of to turn down Sora's help. Although, Sora was a goof and a kid he could still manage to get a job done fairly well if I do say so myself. Sometimes it just took him more than one try to get it right. Goofy smiled as he looked at the princess.

"And ya always got Aladdin." Goofy said.

"He… hasn't been himself lately." Jasmine admitted.

"Is it because of the Heartless?" Donald asked.

The dark haired girl held her hands in front of her and looked away as Donald spoke. She was obviously concerned about Aladdin. I rolled my eyes as Donald took out his wand and looked around suspiciously. He looked so scary that I think my stuffed bunny ran for cover to hide under my bed. Note, I don't have a bunny but the thought was still there. Twilight rolled her eyes before reaching down and ruffling the bird's feathers.

"Easy there, cowboy." Twilight soothed.

The duck glared up at her for ruining his moment but she didn't seem deterred. She just flashed him one of her heart melting smiles and the dirty scowl he gave her faded ever so slightly. He probably felt bad for scowling at her since she gave him the smile. I say that her smile could make anyone feel guilty, aside maybe someone like Xemnas or Saix, the freaks. The princess walked away momentarily before walking back. The pacing was going to get annoying if she continued either that or she was going to wear a hole in the courtyard.

"I'm not sure. Usually, he's the same cheerful Aladdin. But sometimes…he just seems sad." She said, "He leaves the palace and goes off by himself all the time. I've asked him about it, but he says nothing's wrong. He's gone again today. What if he doesn't come back this time?"

Iago popped out from behind Goofy's back. In a moment of panic I tried to grab the bird and hold his beak shut so that he didn't say anything stupid but with being a bird, aerial dodging skills were improved quite thoroughly. I missed and he flew towards Jasmine. She paled when she saw him with a look of complete and utter horror on her face. I took it that she didn't really care for Iago. I was tempted to just swat the bird but my goal was to catch him.

"Hey, maybe he's got a secret girlfriend." Iago suggested, "I know! I'll go find out who she is!"

Jasmine gasped and tried to grab the bird that flew out of her reach hiding behind Sora. I shook my head. It was a good idea to use Sora as a human shield but he still blew it for himself because he had jumped out before we could even explain anything for him. He was a frustrating creature. I considered plucking every feather off of him before relenting.

"Iago! Quick, Sora, catch him! And I'll warn the guards and everyone in the palace!" she yelled

"That's the thing, Iago's not…"

Jasmine wasn't listening to Sora. The poor boy scratched his cheek as he tried to explain, jerking a thumb back at the bird. Sora sighed as we watched the girl run off not listening to a word anyone said. She was too stubborn about her opinion of Iago. She wasn't someone who shared Sora's inability to hold a grudge, unfortunately for Iago. I sighed and shook my head. That could have gone so much better. Turning to look back at the bird Sora spread his hands wide.

"Nice move." Sora groaned.

"Maybe it's something you said." Goofy said, trying to be helpful.

I rolled my eyes. _'No shit.'_ I though bitterly, _'As if the part about a secret girlfriend wasn't bad enough!'_ I shook my head. The bird really needed to learn to keep his beak properly closed or else he was going to get himself hurt, very hurt in the near future. I also needed to work on my 'catch-flying-objects-that-talk' skills. Iago shouldn't have been that hard to catch and yet he was. Either he had a lot of experience or I needed to get into the practice.

"Gee, maybe we should go talk to Aladdin. He's gotta be somewhere in town right?" Goofy said.

"Good idea. I wonder what he's been doing." Sora said

We all looked over at him. I nodded in agreement. It was the best plan of action we had so I say full steam ahead captain! But maybe that was just me, trying to get over going to Port Royal. I smiled to myself as I remembered how much trouble I was going to cause for Jack when I went back. Messing with him was going to be the highlight of my day. Iago landed on Twilight's shoulder and I dropped back to talk to the parrot.

"You sure are unpopular." I told him, "Though, you shouldn't have said that Aladdin's got a secret girlfriend."

The bird sighed, slumping on Twilight's shoulder. The truth of my words sank in and depressed him. Twilight reached over patting him on the head comfortingly. She didn't seem to mind playing taxi for the bird either. He gave her a weak half smile and tried to cheer up for her sake. I suppose Twilight and I made a good team. I point out their flaws, while Twilight comforted them as they picked up what dignity they could. Man, I could be such a downer sometimes.

"Stop thief!" someone yelled

We all stopped and small monkey carrying a lamp shot past us. A young man ran past us waving with a sheepish smile on his lips. I had to admit it was a rather comical sight. Monkey carrying a lamp, chased by a young boy who was being chased by a Peddler – a very angry Peddler who wanted his wares back. I blinked once and then decided that monkey chases could only occur in Agrabah.

"Hi, Sora!" He said.

I started laughing as he ran off followed by the Peddler and his giant turban. The turban bobbed with every step making the man more or less waddle after Aladdin and the monkey with the lamp. I decided to sit back and watch. It was more entertaining that way. Besides, it wasn't like I already knew what was going to happen. I could very easily keep up with them but I suppose that was besides the point.

"Come back here!" The Peddler cried.

"It's Wishapoo!" Twilight shouted.

She pointed at the man's turban. Before he could look at her I slapped a hand over Twilight's mouth as I stared at her with a 'WTF' look. Quickly I pulled down her hand that had been pointing at the man. It would have been pretty awkward for me to have to explain what a 'wishapoo' was when I didn't particularly know. Her insane babble of giggles was muffled by my hand with good reason I suppose. We didn't need all of Agrabah to know we were nut jobs.

"I don't even wanna know." I decided.

Looking around we noticed the boys had taken off after Iago who was following the peddler. I blinked in surprise. I hadn't even noticed Iago left. For a bird as big as he is he can fly pretty fast so maybe it wasn't my fault that I couldn't catch him. He could move quickly if he wanted to. It was just the 'wanting' that was his only problem. It only seemed to occur when he was running away.

"Thanks for telling us you were leaving guys!" Twilight shouted indignantly.

We caught up to the boys as they rounded a corner to see that the young man and the monkey were cornered and the peddler. The Peddler wasn't happy, not in the slightest. I would have actually have been pretty cool about it if Abu stole something from me. It wasn't like I had anything worth value but the lamp belonged to… Oh, right… Well, I suppose the man did have valid reason to be angry then, my bad.

"If you can't control that fur ball… put a leash on him!" The Peddler snarled.

"Look, I'm sorry…" Aladdin said, and then he turned to Abu, "You should be ashamed of yourself, Abu!"

Aladdin turned on the monkey. Abu handed Aladdin the lamp. Aladdin walked over to the peddler and handed it back to him. The man didn't look pleased in the slightest but many people lived lives like that were they were never happy. The Peddler looked like he wanted to skin the small monkey and then sell his fur coat back to Aladdin. That was just putting it nicely. Regardless, life went on as it always did. People were rude, others kind and so it goes.

"No hard feelings?" Aladdin said weakly.

The peddler snatched the lamp out of Aladdin's hands, huffed, and walked away. I shook my head. The Peddler acted as if Aladdin's hands could dirty and sully the 'precious' lamp. I tilted my head and pushed off of the wall that I was leaning on as the others walked forward as Aladdin turned back to the monkey angrily wagging a finger, like some paternal figure scolding a child who had their hand in the cookie jar before dinner.

"Abu!" Aladdin scolded.

The monkey covered its head before glancing around Aladdin. He got excited when he spotted Sora so he ran over to us in what I assumed was to escape the wrath of his angry owner. I didn't blame him. I would have done the exact same thing in his situation. Aladdin walked over to us. He sighed to himself and managed a kindly smile.

"Hey guys, sorry about earlier. I was kinda in a hurry." Aladdin said then he noticed Twilight and I, "Who are your friends?"

Sora glanced back at us with a grin. I was taken aback by the kindness of his smile and the fond look in his eyes. He thought of us as good friends. My heart ached at the thought of making him hate us because we wanted to _save_ two of his enemies. I had to get Sora's opinion on the matter soon. If he thought that some of the Organization could be good and what he would do if they were. It held all of the importance of the worlds to me. …Either that or I had to go into Chess Master mode and figure out a way to keep them alive without him knowing it and disrupting the storyline.

"This is Twilight and Ghost. So, what happened?"

"You know Abu. He couldn't keep his paws off that lamp." Aladdin said amused.

Abu started chattering quickly in what appeared to be protest. Aladdin placed a hand on his hip and waved the other nonchalantly. We all looked down to the protesting monkey and Aladdin crouched down wagging a finger. The boys laughed as I just rolled my eyes. It wasn't really that funny but as the saying goes: simple minds, simple pleasures.

"No talking your way out of this one!"

"I guess you can't be_ that_ down in the dumps, huh?" Sora asked.

Aladdin tilted his head, confused. He didn't understand where Sora was coming from let alone why he said such a thing. I sighed. Sometimes it just seemed like men had to have everything spelled out for them in black and white. But man did I know some women like that as well, it was sad really.

"Who said I was?" Aladdin asked.

"Princess Jasmine. She's worried 'cause you're always in town." Goofy explained.

"Got a new girlfriend?" Donald asked.

"No way!" Aladdin yelled indigently.

Donald looked up at him suspiciously. Twilight and I would have believed him, even if we didn't already play the games. He just had a sincere look in his eyes that just screamed that he would rather die than do such a thing. Aladdin scratched his head in a sheepish manner, knowing that he had been caught in the act, but not a terrible one after all. This was a rated E game, after all, so there was nothing terrible about what he had been doing.

"Still…I guess there's no foolin' Jasmine, huh?" Aladdin asked, "See, Genie and Carpet took off to see the world. It's what Genie always wanted, so I wished him the best and all, but…"

"You miss him." Goofy said, effectively picking up where he left off.

"Man, things must be really quiet with Genie gone." Sora commented sympathetically.

Sora winced slightly. He knew where Aladdin was coming from. Things were hard when you miss a friend. I'd rather die before I'd leave Twilight. But alas, birds of a feather stick together. I looked over at Iago. Perhaps I should lay off the bird jokes since we have a parrot in the group but it didn't stop me once I met Donald so maybe not. Aladdin nodded in agreement to Sora's statement but he didn't want the boy's sympathy that much I could tell.

"Yeah. That's why I come here. The action…the people. There's always something goin' on." Aladdin said, "I mean c'mon! I met you guys here today, right? This place is full of surprises."

I looked down at Iago who was on the ground shivering, Twilight crouching down next to him. I walked over to them and Twilight looked up at me as I crouched next to the bird. I gently stroked his feathers in an attempt to calm him down. What can I say? I like animals. My movement had caught Goofy's attention though. A look of worry crossed Goofy's face. He knew something was wrong by the way Iago was shaking like a leaf.

"Uh, Sora?" Goofy asked.

Sora glanced over at the bird. Sora, as oblivious as he was, missed the fact that Iago was shaking. How could he miss something like that? It wasn't exactly from the cold. What cold? We're in the stupid desert for crying out loud. I doubted that people would shake because of heat either unless they were dehydrated. There was no way Iago was dehydrated or else he would be retching everywhere. Not exactly a pretty picture, right?

"Iago? Oh, right…he wants to apologize for all the trouble he caused." Sora said.

"Oh, he does?"

Aladdin crossed his arms and stared down at the bird. He didn't exactly doubt Sora but he didn't trust Iago. I rolled my eyes, scooping up the bird in a gentle manner. Twilight gently ran her hand over his wings. His entire frame was shaking and it rattled my hands a little but I managed to keep him still without hurting him. Last thing I wanted to do was bust his wings or something. Guilt would be unbearable. The bird in my hands still trembled, as I straightened up.

"Gawrsh, he's so sorry, he's shakin'!" Goofy said.

"Th-th-that lamp!" Iago stammered.

"What about it?" Aladdin asked confused.

The bird jumped into the air with indignant look on his face. He didn't like to be doubted, especially when he was trying so hard to repent. I nodded in approval since he had a very honorable standpoint on his views but I couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at this. I thought I was holding him pretty well but he still managed to get loose.

"It was _the_ lamp!" Iago shouted.

Aladdin rolled his eyes, as Iago landed in my palms again. I shook my head. I had been demoted from warrior to a perch. Lucky me. Twilight looked at me and smiled. She liked Iago too and I think the bird had taken to her rather nicely. They might actually be friends by the end of all of this. That was fantastic.

"C'mon. There're a million like it." Aladdin scoffed.

Iago squawked at the man from his perch, also known as my hands. If anyone from my old world saw me now I would be unrecognizable. I was being nice to people for one and two I was actually smiling. Now don't get me wrong I could be nice and I could smile but I didn't exactly hand out trust like party favors. With me, trust had to be earned. It wasn't a right nor was it a gift that could be tossed away once it got old. Call it a quirk, but it explained why I had very few people in my inner circle and far more in the outer. There were very few people in my world or the multi-verse that truly knew my heart.

"Hey! I was locked up in that thing _for months_! There's no way I'd mistake it!" Iago countered.

I glanced down at Abu who had grabbed his hat and was yelling at Aladdin. I think he might have been saying something along the lines of 'I told you so' but I didn't exactly speak monkey. I made a small note to ask Iago to translate later but I was liable to forget. Iago flew over to Twilight and landed on her shoulder. Guess my hands weren't as comfortable as her shoulder.

"Then we'd better go back and talk to that peddler." Aladdin decided.

"Right behind you." Sora said.

Walking through the streets fighting off the occasional Heartless, mostly attacking Twilight, we did eventually make our way to the peddler's shop. I smiled as Iago squawked at the girl from her shoulder. He was acting as her guard. He told her when a Heartless moved to attack her when her back was turned and in turn she protected him with perfect ease. It was a pretty smooth companionship from what I could tell.

"Seriously, why do they keep attacking you? You have got the worst luck." Iago commented.

Glancing around, we entered into the shop leaving Aladdin and Abu outside. It would have been suspicious if we brought the creature that tried to steal the lamp in the first place. He would toss us out faster than Goofy could trip over something. I yawned. I was slightly bored so you can't exactly blame me, right? The Peddler didn't exactly smile when he saw Twilight and I walk in either so I think this world had a thing against women, just like Port Royal. It was honestly extremely irritating but I wasn't about to swear off of men because of a few, very vocal, bad apples. A lot of my friends back home were of the male species after all.

"Is there any way we can buy that lamp from you?" Sora asked.

The Peddler nodded and rubbed his palms together. If this were a cartoon I swear there would have been money symbols in his eyes. He was a greedy little scrooge like man. I shook my head. He would get his just desserts soon. I just had to wait for it. I suppose that was the only thing that kept me from wringing his neck right then and there and then threatening him with his life for the lamp.

"Of course. That is…_ If_ you can afford it." The Peddler commented.

Sora glanced behind him as I walked over to the nearby moogle. The other wares looked like garbage but moogles were known for having good things. The moogle floated alone and in a small corner. I felt kind of bad for it. The Peddler must have more business than it did since he had more wares. I knew I didn't need to be involved in the conversation so I took it as my cue to bow out, if only for the moment. I had more pressing matters to attend to.

"What can I do for you, kupo?" The moogle asked.

I gave the moogle a kindly smile. It beamed right back at me. It looked excited for the prospect of a customer. Moogles were cute. I couldn't help but want to check out what he had over what the Peddler had because I knew the Peddler would try to rip me off. Moogles had good wares and though sometimes they could be expensive they were always worth it in the end. Especially with all the weapons that were synthesized and such. I needed to get more crystals and shards.

"I was wondering if you had anything for…" I said.

"Donald!" Sora, Twilight, and Goofy yelled.

Both of us jumped and looked behind me. I raised an eyebrow to see that Goofy and Sora were scolding Donald. Twilight had a disapproving look on her face. I think Donald found treasure or something. He always did seem to have a weakness for shiny objects but maybe that was only my observations speaking.

I rolled my eyes turning back to the moogle. It gave me an odd look, something like, _'You really have to put up with that?' _I would have laughed. Instead, I just continued to smile. Had to play it off, I suppose. They weren't embarrassing. In fact, I didn't even feel a thing when they did anything that others would find embarrassing. I didn't care what others thought about me; I'd never given a damn about my reputation. The only opinion that really mattered was mine.

"…the sun?" I finished.

"The peddler has some good stuff, kupo." It said sadly.

The moogle shook its head regretfully. It looked angrily at the wares of the merchant, as if blaming the loss of a customer on them. I smiled and nodded and started to walk away. If it didn't have anything it didn't have anything. There was nothing I could do about it. I guess I had to go to the Peddler after all. I was going to use dexterous haggling skills I learned from my world to get whatever it was cheaper.

"Wait kupo! Aren't you going to buy something?"

I glanced back to see it giving me sad puppy dog eyes, something akin to a kicked puppy look. My heart sank in my chest like an iron weight. I couldn't exactly say no, especially when he looked so sad. I sighed heading back to it. I had a weakness for cute things, not as big as Twilight but still... If Axel found out I'd never hear the end of it. I'd be utterly embarrassed. I had nothing to tease him about, being a weakness and all. I suppose I could mock him about water but I didn't want to get roasted.

"Alright, show me what you got."

It gave a brilliant smile and opened the menu on its holograph. I looked it over, trying not to meet its eyes or I might end up buying too much from it just to make it happy. It looked delighted over the fact that I reconsidered and decided to get something from it. I had to admit it had better wares than the Peddler could ever dream of having. I looked through it and checked how much munny I had before pulling out the five hundred needed.

"Give me an Aegis Chain." I told it.

The moogle smiled and the chain appeared in my hand replacing the munny that had been present before. I blinked in surprise. I didn't know that the munny just vanished. It was actually a pretty cool concept. If only they showed that in the games. But then again you can't expect games to have every little detail, right? We didn't know that Demyx was going to be in the Land of the Dragons, lucky he showed up the way he did too.

"Thank you for your purchase, kupo!" The moogle said.

I smiled and walked over to the peddler, hooking the chain on my right hip. It dangled and glinted innocently in the bright sunlight. I turned back to the others, smiling slightly as I felt my defense go up, as Sora and the others walked out. Twilight glanced back at me as I walked over to the Peddler. Now to get what I wanted in the first place – protection against sun. Though, I didn't know if it was called sun block here.

"I heard you have some good stuff for protection against the sun." I told him.

The large turban bobbed as the peddler nodded. He eyed the moogle in the corner, as if in a triumphant manner and mocking the cute creature. The corners of my mouth twitched down slightly but I made no other sign of my growing irritation with the man. I had to keep my temper. I couldn't afford to snap right now. I knew I would need to vent some of my anger on Heartless later but killing Heartless was different from killing people. I could get in trouble for hurting him, even if he was a douche.

"Yes, it is 100 munny." He replied.

I raised an eyebrow as he pulled out a small bottle. It was puny. It was hardly worth 100 munny at all. I raised an eyebrow and folded my arms across my chest. There was no way I was paying a 100 munny for that. He had to be kidding me. Either that or he was really, really asking for a beat down. I would have been more than delighted to give it to him. But I was on a tight schedule. We had things to do, places to go, Heartless to kill. As Sora would have told Phil: Hero stuff.

"I wouldn't pay 20 for a bottle that small but since I'm feeling generous I'll give you 30 for it." I countered.

The peddler shook his head. I scoffed. He had to be kidding. I was losing my patience. I could tell the moogle was looking at me reverently. Obviously no one haggled with the Peddler or if they did it wasn't often. It was in for a treat. I wasn't leaving until I got it at a discounted price. I wasn't made of munny, though surprisingly I had already managed to get a lot; the munny that was absorbed just transferring itself into my wallet so we didn't have to continually pick it up. But I could only pick up so much when we fought Heartless and Nobodies. I was sure that Sora, Donald and Goofy just pooled theirs together but Twilight and I liked to keep ours separate. We liked to buy our own things instead of asking for munny that we earned. Thing was though, I'm also a cheapskate; I don't spend all that often.

"80 at the least." He insisted.

I blinked and shrugged. I sighed ever so slightly to show I was growing impatient. The man sneered at me. He disliked the fact that I wasn't just taking the item and leaving, paying his overpriced fees. He didn't know me at all. I wasn't going to roll over and let him take advantage of my wallet. I earned my munny the hard way, unlike him – scamming good people into paying too much. The jerk wouldn't get his punishment fast enough.

"I guess you don't want business here, 30." I scowled.

This continued back in forth until I had whittled him down to 45 which I handed him and grabbed the bottle and started to head out. I slathered some on my face, arms, and shoulders before tossing it over to Twilight. She looked at it for a moment, unsure of what it was. Then she realized and smiled at me gratefully. She wouldn't burn now. She would be able to hug Demyx next we saw him without wincing in incredible pain.

"Thanks," Twilight said.

Walking out of the shop I looked around as the others waited impatiently for us and I raised an eyebrow. When I gave them a cold look they sort of paled and looked in different directions. That's what I thought. I wasn't one to be rushed out of a store, granted I didn't go shopping often but when I did I made sure that what I got was quality. I wasn't about to waste munny either. Twilight cleared her throat.

"What?" I asked.

They shook their heads and started to head off. Twilight and I looked at each other and just shrugged before following them, Iago on Twilight's shoulder. I think she was his favorite perch but I supposed that's because she gives off an aura that screams, _'Animal lover!' _Walking through the large doors outside of the Palace Walls everyone looked around Sora running over to the trunks, grabbing them. Once he was done we all set out through the desert to the Cave of Wonders.

* * *

I sighed as we stepped into the shadow surrounding the tiger head cave entrance. That sun was really hot and with the shadows that seemed to magically stay in place around the cave helped to lessen the heat. Iago flew ahead slightly stopping when he spotted the cave, as if we couldn't already tell but I let him lead the way regardless.

"This is it!" Iago told us.

I glanced around as numerous Heartless, Shadows and Soldiers mostly, appeared. Taking the opportunity I ran forward slicing through the Heartless that got in my way and grabbed the chests that were behind the head before rounding it and getting into the mouth of the tiger as the others ran forward joining me in the mouth. I let Sora and the others take the lead joining Twilight towards the back, keeping her company talking about one of the fanfics that she was writing back home, and making sure she didn't fall down the stairs.

My eye twitched as we entered the Valley of Stone and Fortuneteller Heartless appeared. Both Twilight and I jumped out of the way of a Blizzard spell and I ran forward, Twilight going after a different Heartless, jumping up and swinging my sword down, slicing through the Heartless before landing and running forward, joining the others. I glared back at the room.

"I _hate_ Fortuneteller Heartless!" I hissed.

Twilight laughed quietly as we walked into a room with waterfall on each side and a jewel floating in the middle of the room. I looked over at Twilight. She was looking around like a child on Christmas day. That was my best college friend for you. I smiled to myself and cleared my throat. She looked back at me, sort of surprised and blushing sheepishly.

"You ever notice that the waterfalls are going up?" I asked.

"That is so cool," She said in amazement.

Her mouth dropped open as she stared at the water flowing upwards. I turned to watch as Abu jumped off of Aladdin's shoulder and grabbed onto the jewel bringing it down. Everyone looked around as the waterfalls vanished, everyone jumped as angry-looking statues dropped onto the ground with a loud thud, Abu scrambling up onto Aladdin's shoulder. Abu grabbed the jewel jumping back as large ice crystals dropped above him.

"Grab the monkey and get over to that statue!" I yelled over to Sora

He turned to look at me but I was distracted and Twilight was pointing towards the statue. She, unfortunately, didn't notice the ice crystal forming above her head, I flung a hand out and a Thunder spell flew from it hitting the ice crystal. My mouth dropped open and I stared at my hand in amazement.

"Cool! It's like White Lightning from Bleach!" I said astonished.

I turned in time to see Sora running forward, scooping up the monkey, and jumping over the moving floor. As soon as he was close enough Abu jumped down and ran forward placing the jewel in the crevice where it was meant to go. A mist-like white passed between us and the statues and when it cleared the statues no longer looked angry. I sighed and turned to see the statue in the doorway disappear turning into dust that vanished into the air. We walked through the doorway and entered the Chasm of Challengers and Sora ran over to a plaque.

"Complete your task within the time allotted." Sora read.

I blinked before giving a startled yelp as I felt the floor vanish behind me in a flash of light. My sword appeared in my hand and I looked around for the Heartless that were quickly appearing around us. Landing low, I grunted and swung my sword in an arc around me deterring the Heartless that had come after me for enough time for me to stand up. I sighed in frustration as the floor vanished again. This continued until we reached the last floor and I stood up. Glancing around me saw Twilight stumble and a Large Body charging her.

I started running forward but stopped when the Heartless suddenly bounced away from the girl, a barrier having popped in front of her. I chuckled at her shocked face before jumping back dodging the other Large Body that was charging around the platform. Hitting it with a lightning bolt when it passed me I ran over to Twilight who still had the barrier up. She looked up at me in shock as I placed a hand on it and moved through the barrier as darkness surrounded me. I knelt down beside her.

"You okay?" I asked. When she nodded I said, "Then you can let the barrier go. See it's over."

I nodded towards the staircase that had appeared heading up to the doors. She sighed and let the barrier vanish. Straightening up I stretched a hand down to her and she grabbed it and pulled herself up. She stared at her hands for a moment. She looked surprised at what she had done but not displeased. In fact, she looked elated. I was happy for her. She was becoming so much stronger now.

"My powers are starting to wake up." She told me.

"I told you, you just needed to give it some time." I reminded her.

I nodded and gave her a dazzling grin. She looked over at me and we both smiled and ran over to the boys who were waiting for us at the base of the stairs, seeing us coming towards them they started up the stairs. I blinked as they stopped to look at the plaque. Did we really have to keep stopping? Did we really have to read it?

"Victor of the trial…You possess great strength!" Sora read out loud.

There was a loud rumbling as the large doors behind us opened up. Turning around the group headed through the doors into the darkened corridor. Heading down the dark stairs, I grabbed Twilight as she tripped almost falling down the stairs; we soon came upon a brightly lit room with mounds of gold everywhere. Just a handful of this would be able to allow any of us to buy whatever we wanted for the rest of our lives.

"Whoa!" was muttered throughout the group.

We walked further into the room. Walking around we looked around trying to find the treasure that would satisfy the peddler while I tried to stop myself from taking something out of the room, it was such a temptation. I looked over at Aladdin, waiting for his approval on any of the gold pieces. It was his call in the end after all. Besides, I didn't want to pick something out and have it mess up the events that were to unfold.

"There. That one should do it." he said

Looking up at the gold trophy-like statue with the jewels, the colors of the triforce from the Zelda series**. **I gave a slight smile as it shimmered there and Donald ran forward to get a closer look at it. Donald he stared at it intently. He was probably jealous that the Peddler would get to have something so nice.

"Oh boy, it's perfect. That guy's gonna like this." Donald commented.

"Sure looks valuable." Sora commented.

I glanced over at Sora. I rolled my eyes since the boys weren't paying attention to Twilight or I. I began shaking my head at Twilight who had opened her mouth to say something. She fell silent, knowing I was right in telling her not to comment. We couldn't mess up the plot line just yet. We had to keep it on track so we could save Demyx and Axel. It would be worth it in the end but we just had to wait.

"Great! Now let's go get that lamp. We gotta keep Jafar bottled up or he's gonna destroy Agrabah!" Aladdin said.

I grinned as Iago and Abu tried to hoist up a gold statue with a gigantic ruby before laughing. They were just having a bit of fun and the ruby was rather pretty. I liked it. But I wouldn't want something quite as big, maybe something smaller that could fit in a pocket or act as piece of jewelry. I liked fashion and all but I didn't care for gaudy flashy jewels or overly expensive gifts. I was a simple girl I suppose.

"Stop!" Donald yelled

They dropped the statue in alarm. Twilight and I both grinned as Donald's greedy nature began to be tempted by the giant ruby. He looked completely hypnotized by the gleaming shimmer of the large ruby. I was tempted to snap my fingers to draw his attention to us instead of the gem. He gave a surprised quack and vigorously shook his head.

"Hey, snap out of it, Donald!" Aladdin yelled

My head jerked up as I felt darkness encroaching, not in portal way but in a different way like the light was being devoured. Twilight noticing my sudden shift, as well as the decreasing light, unsheathed her sword and prepared for a fight. The boys looked around as they began to notice the sudden decrease in light and darkness taking over the room. There was only a small bit of light in the center of the room where we were standing. I sighed looking around at the Heartless that were appearing around us.

"Why does this always happen?" Donald demanded.

Everyone split in different directions quickly taking care of the floating Heartless before the Fat Bandits appeared. There wasn't a lot of room between the six of us and the Heartless, it made maneuvering and fighting difficult. I grimaced as I was forced into Sora once again by one of the Fat Bandit's charge, the boy steadying me for a brief second as I regained my balance. We both attacked the thing once it passed us making it vanish. I let out a relieved sigh as the light flooded back into the room; relieved that we would finally have some breathing room once again.

Looking around I saw that Sora and I were standing in the center of the room and the others were coming towards us. I sighed as I saw Twilight coming over with Aladdin, who had grabbed the golden trophy. Sora glanced behind himself and at us. He looked back ahead at the Heartless blocking our paths. Together we cut them down.

"Let's go!" Sora called.

I nodded and we all started running up the stairs. Deciding to take the easy route we stepped onto the teleporter and headed up to the cave entrance, bypassing all of the Heartless that would've gotten in the way. It didn't take long before we reached the peddler's shop again and we looked around confused as there was nobody there. Aladdin was still holding onto the statue like a lifeline. He wouldn't need it anytime soon.

"Hello?" Aladdin asked.

"Stop your whining and hand it over!"

I blinked as I heard Pete's voiced from outside. Alas, we had to go around with tall, fat and ugly. This was going to be a cinch. We beat him once we could beat him a thousand times over. I was pretty sure we could even do it blindfolded but now that would be getting cocky and that's never any good when in a battle. Getting cocky about a fight usually ends up getting a person killed. I would prefer not to be dead any time soon.

"Oh no! I'm trading it for treasure. This lamp is going to bring me riches!"

My mouth twitched into a smile as I heard the peddler's protesting. The Peddler was getting his just desserts and oh, did it taste sweet – for me at least. I wasn't exactly going to jump to his rescue after the way he treated the moogle. He got what was coming to him. I was, unfortunately, the type to advocate that revenge was best served cold but even I knew the limits that one should take when it came to the cycle of revenge. I glanced over at Aladdin as he hesitated, uncertain of what to do with the trophy. The others had already run out to beat the tar out of Pete – our favorite punching bag.

"Leave the statue and have the moogle hang on to it but hurry up." I said

I ran out and Aladdin soon followed, without the statue. We joined the others and looked around to see the peddler running with the lamp with Pete chasing after him. I had this odd sense of déjà vu and then I remembered why when I saw Abu sitting on Aladdin's shoulder and pointing at the Peddler. My line of sight zeroed in on the black lamp in the Peddler's hands.

"Oh no, you don't! Get back here, you!" Pete yelled.

We all blinked watching them confusedly for a second before running after them all, chasing them all the way to the Palace Gates. We watched as Pete gained on the peddler and snatched the lamp away from him. It was like an elaborate game of tag. No one was winning but right now the Peddler seemed to have the upper hand. As much as I disliked him I disliked Pete more, so yay Peddler.

"Thank you." Pete said snidely.

Pete passed the peddler and the guy with the large turban shook a fist at him before speeding up. It was rather surprising since I didn't believe the little man could run that fast. But then again his run was like an odd waddle since his turban bounced like Pete's belly on every step. Yuck, Pete's belly… The man really needed to do something about that. He could poke out someone's eye or something.

"It's mine!" The Peddler roared.

Grabbing the lamp back out of Pete's hands and running faster around the courtyard with Pete on hot on his tail. The game was growing boring. I was tempted to step in if only for the sole purpose of tripping Pete. You do know that the bigger they are the funnier the noise they make when they fall down? I had yet to grow tired to the noise Pete makes. Pete was still running after the peddler, not to be deterred by anything, not even the wheeze of his own intake of air.

"Lamp hog!" Pete shouted.

"Go away!" The Peddler shouted back.

I snickered as they continued around their circuit of the courtyard. _'Round and round and round they go,'_ I mocked in my head, _'When they stop, Nobody knows.'_ It was a childish rhyme, I know but it fit the situation so well that I couldn't resist. Pete eventually caught up to the peddler and grabbed the lamp and held it out of the shorter man's reach, holding the lamp up in the air.

"Heh heh, I win!" Pete gloated

I watched as Iago launched himself from Twilight's shoulder with a sort of fiery determination in his eyes. He flew in and snatched the lamp without Pete realizing it. About a second later Pete looked up to see that he no longer had the lamp and turned to see the parrot holding onto it. Iago was flying as if his life depended on it. It probably did. Pete's mitts could smash Iago very easily.

"Nice one, Iago!" Sora cheered.

"Way to go!" Aladdin called.

"Don't drop it!" Donald cautioned.

"Look! Behind you!" Goofy yelled.

Goofy cupped his hands around his mouth. I watched as the bird zigzagged until taking a sharp left and letting not only Pete but also the peddler to hit the wall. That had to be rather embarrassing for them to be outwitted by a bird. Iago looked over his shoulder to see if his plan worked. He grinned when he realized that it did. My eyes widened. I reached forward and my mouth opened to caution him. Twilight beat me to the punch.

"Watch out for the …!" Twilight cried. I smacked a hand to my forehead as the bird ran into a wall and Twilight muttered, "…wall."

Pete grabbed the lamp up off of the ground and laughed. I wanted to beat the man's face in, though I was using man lightly. He wasn't exactly a human man. He also wasn't man enough to do any job on his own without a Heartless or two to hide behind. The yellow bellied coward made me sick sometimes. I couldn't wait until it was in the World that Never was and he finally manned up for his actions.

"Nice try, bird brain. Just wait till Jafar's free! He's gonna make one beauty of a Heartless!" Pete mocked.

Sora and the other boys ran forward but stopped and looked around as what felt and sounded like an earthquake occurred. Twilight staggered and grabbed a hold of my forearm to keep balanced. There was a loud shout among a great deal of bells and whistles. Leave it to Genie to make the entrance of the century. I wouldn't forget it anytime soon. Plus, if he did this every time I would know it was him.

"I'm _home_!"

I watched as the blue genie flew past Pete making a sharp turn. Pete had a look of shock and horror on his face. I looked over at Sora and Aladdin. Both were trying hard not to laugh. Pete was being taken care of by someone who was unintentionally harming him. Genie was just too much. Bet birthday parties were a riot with him around. Everyday would be something new and exciting. Things were bound to be lively.

"Al! It's been eons!" Genie cried. "Al, you princely little muffin, you!"

I laughed as Genie hugged Pete. I made a mental note to make sure not to allow Genie to hug me. I rather liked my rib cage intact. I needed it for breathing. But Genie wasn't one to be deterred by a lack of stimulating conversation since he teleported behind a dizzy Pete. Pete wouldn't know what hit him by the time Genie was done with him.

"Cosmic travel can get so lonely without a friend. To think I left you forlorn and Genie-less…Oh, the _humanity_!"

I tilted my head as Aladdin tried to get Genie's attention without success as Genie grew larger. Aladdin was going to have to try harder than that. Genie's attention was just on his homecoming speech. I smiled and looked over at Twilight. She covered her mouth with her hand to stifle her giggles but it was no use. They were still coming strong and even Sora was having a hard time keeping a straight face.

"Hey, Al, you've been puttin' on weight?" Genie asked. He teleported next to Pete again saying, "Aw, of course, what am I saying? You're living at the palace now."

I laughed as a second Genie appeared. They looked at each other in a way that mocked lovers. I for whatever reason thought of Axel. I felt heat cross my cheeks and I ducked my head so no one could see my blush. I was pretty sure Twilight was thinking of Demyx. If anyone looked at me I hoped they would write it off as boredom or exhaustion catching up with me or even a bad sunburn as I tried to shake off the wayward thought.

"Aladdin!" Genies said in a bad imitation of Jasmine's voice. The other hugged the second Genie saying, in a cheap imitation of Aladdin's voice, "Jasmine!"

Fireworks went off in the background. I was impressed by the display of magic. A single Genie reappeared next to a still dizzy Pete. There was a teasing smile on Genie's lips but it was something I would expect from someone who was my best friend. I had seen Twilight wear it a couple times and even Sora. Hell, even I had worn it in the past. He was poking fun for the sake of poking fun. There was no harm intended behind his words.

"I can just picture it…" Genie said.

A smaller version of Genie appeared next to Pete. Pete was still thrown for a loop and Genie's size changes and doppelgangers weren't helping. He hovered around Pete's shoulders. It reminded me of the Gullwings, in their fairy forms. He was tiny but they were smaller yet. Genie also could have been mistaken for a gnat, something annoy and pesky. He was still a pretty cool guy all and all.

"Wait, tell me. Am I being a pest? Just a big blue pest? Aw, who cares, Al! I'm just so glad to _see _you!" Genie commented.

He poofed into the larger version of himself again and rapidly shook Pete's hands as Aladdin walked up. The force of each jerk up nearly caused Pete to topple over. The force of each force down nearly made him take a face plant. Either one would have been fine in my books. Pete deserved the humiliation he was going through.

"Genie!" Aladdin said.

Genie looked over at Aladdin then back to Pete before dropping him. Pete fell to the ground with an undignified 'umpf' but Genie didn't seem to notice. He pulled away from Pete as if he had some sort of disease or something. I was pretty sure he did. I wouldn't exactly put it past him, you know? He just screamed that he was unclean.

"Oops!" Genie muttered sheepishly.

"I'll teach you to make a fool out of me!" Pete yelled.

Pete sat up finally composing himself and shook a fist at us. He looked completely angry. I rolled my eyes '_Pete you don't need us to make a fool out of you; you do that just fine on your own.'_ Everyone was ignoring him as Genie picked up Aladdin and the two of them hugged both of them happy to see each other. Genie glanced back as Sora walked over to the two of them, twisting further to see Pete standing up. Pete stamped on the ground.

"Time for Plan B! I'm finishin' you mugs off right now!" He roared.

He lifted his hand in the air forming a fist and slamming it on the ground. I jerked back slightly throwing a hand up to block the small shards of wood that came at my face due to a cart flying into the air because of a geyser that spurted out of the ground, a Heartless appearing in a flash of light. The bushes caught on fire, a Heartless appearing in heat and fire. I glanced between Volcanic Lord and Blizzard Lord as they floated in front of us watching for the attack, Volcanic Lord attacked first. All of us dodging as he belly flopped on the ground leaving a trail of burnt ground behind him.

As he was bouncing around Sora got underneath him and tossed him into Blizzard Lord. Donald and Twilight immediately casting Thunder spells on the floating unconscious Heartless, making him disappear quickly. Sora and I went after Blizzard Lord, which had landed on the ground and started attacking us. The fat Heartless became skinny for a moment as it breathed out ice, freezing the surrounding ground. Both Sora and I dodged the attack and started pounding on the Heartless as Donald cast Thunder.

I glanced back for a moment to see Twilight skid on the ice, tripping. I gave a small smile and shook my head before turning back to the Heartless in front of me. It vanished and my eyes widened as I heard pounding on the ground turning to see Volcanic Lord back and attacking as Blizzard Lord floated in the air above. Sora, once again, caught Volcanic Lord and threw him into Blizzard Lord; the boy ran forward and attacked the fire Heartless.

As it vanished I saw a smaller version of the Heartless bounce off and I stabbed my sword through one of the closest one, making it vanish as Blizzard Lord attacked Sora and the others with its icy breath. I swept a hand out to it casting Thunder and causing it to vanish creating smaller versions of itself. I growled in annoyance as I went after the smaller versions of the ice Heartless.

'_These stupid things never die and they always use the same attacks, this battle is rather repetitive.' _Every time the boys defeated one of the larger versions of the Heartless it would always create smaller versions, after this happened about four more times I finally got tired of it and swept a hand out at the Heartless summoning darkness. The darkness surrounded Volcanic Lord in fire-like streaks that it couldn't control and was eventually consumed.

Sora glanced back over at me for a second in surprise before going after Blizzard Lord, this last volley of attacks against the Heartless destroying it for the last time. We watched as Blizzard Lord vanished in a flash of light, the Heart floating into the sky and vanishing into a pinprick of light. We all turned to Pete who stamped on the ground. He was hardly scary. In fact, he looked like a child having a tantrum.

"You've messed with me for the last time! I'm gonna get you yet!" Pete shouted.

I rolled my eyes and chuckled as he turned around and ran off. I glanced over as Genie and Aladdin hugged again, Carpet and Abu flying in around everyone. Iago followed the pair the lamp clenched in his beak. I smiled as everyone followed the trio down into a dungeon. Iago dropped the lamp into the middle of a large stone box, with a clatter as everyone gathered around it. Goofy and Twilight stared at the lamp as Sora and Aladdin pushed the heavy cover, closing the box. I stretched as we walked back up into the sunlight of the courtyard, spotting Jasmine we walked over there.

"Abu!" Aladdin yelled.

We looked around to see what the fuss was about. We spotted the monkey running towards us, jewel clutched under his arm, as Aladdin chased after him. Aladdin didn't look too happy with his furry little companion. I shook my head. When Abu didn't want to be caught he was very good at avoiding getting caught, just like Iago.

"Catch him!" Aladdin yelled to us.

Both Twilight and I cracked up laughing as the boys jumped trying to catch the monkey. Abu froze in horror. They could crush him flat with their weight alone but they were being careful about doing so. They landed with a loud thump on top of the monkey, who had dropped the jewel. Aladdin seeing that the boys had caught him walked up.

"He must've secretly stolen it from the Cave of Wonders." Aladdin sighed.

"Abu!" Donald scolded.

Donald stood up and snatched the jewel out of the monkey's hands. It was the same ruby that had stunned him into silence earlier. I chuckled as he looked at it his eyes widening, transfixed. Maybe it was a bird thing to have an obsession with shiny objects. I didn't know. I wasn't a bird. Goofy had no problem. Sora had no problem. Twilight and I were fine. But Donald, always Donald, fell for gold and jewels. Maybe he had a relative who was a magpie somewhere.

"Wow!" Donald said in amazement.

"I guess some things are just hard to resist." Goofy commented.

Goofy watched Donald and stated, as the duck's eyes narrowed as he continued to stare at the jewel. Goofy's comment was something like a warning from a friend not to fall for the temptation of riches and gold. Nothing good came from such greed. Donald shook his head vigorously, appearing to snap out of his greed.

"Aw, who needs it!" He yelled.

Yelling that he 'threw' the jewel and everyone turned to where it had supposedly landed. He, however, didn't fool Abu, who was standing behind him, and yelled at the duck as everyone turned to see what the matter was. Donald turned around sheepishly. He didn't want to admit he had been caught in the act of keeping the stone.

"Oh…uh…I guess it got stuck! What?"

The surprised exclamation came from the duck as the jewel started to glow and a brilliant flash came from it. The light was bright. Twilight was smiling. She loved it whenever we found another Keyhole. I smiled. I suppose it was nice to realize that we were getting close to the halfway point of our journey. We were almost there but then I realized we also had to worry about the fact that Demyx and Axel could die if we didn't play our cards right.

"Whoa!" everyone exclaimed in surprise.

I blinked as Sora opened another gate. Then I nodded, knowing it was time to move on. Hopefully the flight wasn't going to be too long on the Gummi ship. If Heartless didn't kill me the flights between worlds would. Sora was frowning and seemingly thinking deeply as he looked up at the sky. Aladdin walked up confused. He had no idea what was going on and who could blame him. It wasn't everyday Sora's Keyblade gave a fireworks show, right?

"Sora…What is it?" Aladdin asked.

"I think it's time for us to go." Sora explained.

Jasmine walked forward and held onto Aladdin's arm. She was frowning. She worried over Sora. I wondered if it was just a Princess of Light thing or if she really did worry for Sora because he was Sora. I suppose the good thing about being in the game now was being able to set all of the pairings straight and find out what was what.

"Will you be back?" Jasmine asked.

"We will, I promise!" Sora swore.

Sora nodded and jerked a thumb at himself with his childish smile on his face. I walked over to him with a slight smile on my own lips. I leaned on one of his shoulders, causing him to look up at me surprised. He obviously didn't expect the slight display of affection, coming from me. I could be kind when I wanted to be. But what can I say? The kid was growing on me. I suppose he was becoming the little brother I never wanted.

"You promise, I guarantee." I said.

Aladdin gave us a smile and a thumbs up before we all looked up as Donald cast the spell to take us to the gummi ship in a flash of light.


	20. Vampires, Skeletons, Mummies oh my

Well you guys I'm back. You have no idea how lucky you are that I double saved all of my chapters 'cause my laptop's harddrive had to be replaced and all my data on it went poof. T_T Oh well. Anyways on to the more important stuff.

Shout outs: Kida-san(My lovely beta, you're the best), static-lighting, Nobody-XV, Phsychoticsadist, GinryuFox, Arachne Acantha, Alexandria Volturi, Kora Bloom, Clemerl, Riayna Darkheart, NebraeExbaren, sesshomarusmate54, Exemia, Queen Baka, Magical Molly M., Cristiline Ice, Ereneviana, lonewolfgirl-sademo588, and DarknessPwnsLight.

Disclaimer: Have you read the last some chapters. It hasn't changed since then, no matter how much I wished it would.

* * *

**Chapter 20: Vampires, Skeletons, Mummies… oh my **

There was a flash and we ended back in the gummi ship. Twilight sat down in her seat grinning, like the Cheshire Cat. Smirking I glanced over at her and sat in my own seat watching as the boys sat down and Sora prepared to fly off. Twilight leaning over to me signaling that she didn't want to be overheard by Sora, Donald and Goofy. The boys were too busy talking to one another to notice the two of us anyways.

"Isn't Axel kidnapping… you-know-who right about now?" She asked softly.

"Well, I certainly hope he's not kidnapping Voldy, but if you are meaning who I think you mean then yes, I believe he is kidnapping her right around now." I responded.

I smiled slightly at the nickname she dubbed Kairi with. By no means was Kairi as scary as Voldemort but I guess that's why it was kind of funny. I mean, come on. She gets a Keyblade that looks like one big flower. That was hardly enough to make anyone duck and cover. Twilight smiled slightly and I sighed as I leaned back in my chair for a moment. It was rather nice to get one minute of relaxation in before we had to go and save another world. The jobs of heroes were never done.

"So, where are we headed next?" she asked.

Donald glanced over at Sora as the boy twisted around to look at us a gigantic grin spreading across his face. He looked like Christmas had come early, no pun intended with that. I had a feeling this was going to be rather interesting, to say the least. What with Santa and all that. I sent a look towards Twilight, wondering how she'd react once we met the man.

"Halloween Town!" Sora proclaimed.

I blinked and then started staring at the ceiling. I was bracing myself for the worst to come. It's always so frustrating when most of the time we spend is in the castles of whoever we help, sleeping or in the gummi twiddling our thumbs and hoping for something better to do. It's not like the gummi had TV or anything so that ruled out movies and any day time television, not that I was an avid fan of As the World Turns. Blech, soaps I really wasn't a fan. If anyone Goofy might have been a fan, if he were to ever watch it that is.

"How long?" I asked.

Looking at him, he shrugged and turned to Donald. I smirked. Sora was probably never going to be able to fly the gummi so long as Donald was in control. The bird was likely to have a coronary if Sora so much as hit the button for the AC. But then again when it came to Sora Donald tended to blow things out of proportions.

"14 hours." Donald said

I grimaced, wondering what was with the double digit distances between the worlds, before turning my seat to the table in between Twilight and I, as she brought up a monopoly game. I helped her start settling up. It really was sad at how quickly we were able to get it all together. We really had to get some new games or something. One could only play monopoly so many times without wanting to scream and we were getting to the point where I wanted to scream.

"Hey, you got the time?" I asked.

"9 am"

She checked her watch, to make sure she was correct. Then she nodded, signaling that she was right. I whistled as I rolled the dice. I smiled at my roll, I got a pair of sixes, hard to do but I guess that was just the luck of things. I wondered if Luxord would have taken offense to that. He was an avid gambler so if I were to gamble better…? I smirked.

"We were only there for 2 hours?" I mused, "That took less time than I thought it would. If nothing else fighting will definitely wake you up in the morning. "

"Well it's a good thing we chose a long game, now isn't it?" Twilight teased.

She chuckled and settled down in her seat. I smiled laughing quietly as I bought my first property.

* * *

14 hours later and 3 arguments about what we were listening to, mostly between Twilight, Sora, and Donald, as Goofy and I just waited patiently, me mostly fervently praying for an iPod or mp3 player of some sort to fall out of the sky so I didn't have to listen to them anymore, we finally reached Halloween Town.

I blinked and smiled at the new outfit that I had gained. I had become extremely pale and now had long black hair. A high collared, fitted black shirt had replaced my tank top. Feeling the collar of my shirt I found a yin yang symbol there. I now also had a black leather trench coat, black pants and combat boots came along with the look. My gloves had changed into leather gloves with what I hoped weren't blood stains on them. I could feel the makeup on me and paused using the silver wristband as a mirror and seeing the blue eye shadow and darkened eyelashes I smiled. I looked like a kick ass vamp but got the feeling that this was more of an Ergo Proxy look. It was a shame I wouldn't be able to keep the trench coat once we left though. I do like a good trench coat.

Glancing around I saw Sora, Donald, and Goofy in their own Halloween Town outfits but my eyes fell onto Twilight and the only way to describe her look was cool. Her hair had also changed to black and was slightly longer than it had been originally but had a punk cut with layers that stuck out at odd angles. Her normally blue eyes had changed to a blood red. She had a bright red trench coat that had a spider web design on the bottom edge of the coat and multiple short belts meant to hold the coat closed. A black cross was on her right sleeve that was being held onto the rest of the coat by belts and what was left of the seam. On her other arm there was a dark arm band and a belt that went down to her elbow, this sleeve being belted up to her elbow so that it revealed a black knuckle glove with red and black wristbands covering it.

Her v-neck shirt had red and black strips while she had a leather chocker and dog tags adorning her neck. She had a red pleated skirt that went to her mid thigh black stockings covering her legs. There were red leg warmers with black designs on them that covered her black leather high heeled platform boots. On the leg warmers were belts to keep them in place chains coming off of the belts. All in all she had a very punk look that was very cool.

Once everyone had taken in their new looks we followed Sora into the creepy graveyard where if you touched one of the gravestones it would topple over and try to attack you. I looked back at the boys as they stopped in front of a scarecrow talking about something as Twilight got accustomed to her new shoes. Smiling I offered her an arm and she clasped onto it stumbling slightly, it took a few seconds but she did eventually get used to the shoes and let go of my arm as Zero circled the boys, startling them. Sora watched the ghost dog.

"Hey, it's Zero! How've you been, boy?" Sora asked happily.

We watched as the dead dog flew into the town, I raised an eyebrow at the twinkling lights that were distinctly not Halloween-ish. Walking into the Town Square everyone was looking around in confusion as there were twinkling lights hung everywhere and a long makeshift wooden launch pad had been erected. Sora stared at the rickety launch pad.

"What's that for?" Sora asked.

I felt my inner sweatdrop going as we heard the bells. I pinched the bridge of my nose. This was going to be a very, very long night. Twilight put a hand on my shoulder, trying to comfort me and console the growing anger inside of me. We turned to Donald as he stared up into the sky. I sighed and took a deep breath.

"It's Jack!" Donald cried.

I watched with an 'oh come on' face as Jack Skellington landed on the platform in a trashcan sleigh. The thin, tall skeleton stood up and waved at us. Seeing the Pumpkin King happy when he was supposed to be frightening was rather odd. It was like implying that one should drink chocolate milk without the chocolate in the milk. It just didn't work.

"Sora, Donald, Goofy and new girls! Welcome, welcome back and Merry Christmas!" He cheered.

Sora was just as confused as the rest of us. Granted, Twilight and I were merely playing along for the sake of playing along. We played the games. We've seen the movies. We know why Jack was in a Christmas mood of all things. I had to fight the urge to smile. Instead I tilted my head to the side and put a puzzled expression on.

"Merry Christmas? Don't you mean 'Happy Halloween'?" Sora asked.

"Of course, Halloween greetings from Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King." Jack said.

Jack placed a hand on his chest as he spoke. He lurched forward scaring Sora, Donald, and Twilight but soon straightened up. Twilight didn't realize she had a killer grip on my arm until I managed to pry her off. She smiled at me sheepishly, partially because she knew it was going to happen and she still got scared anyways and because she embarrassed for letting herself get scared. Jack waved a bony hand dismissively.

"Forgive me. I'm in a Christmas mood. You see, I'm running the show again this year… but I need Sandy Claw's blessing, so I'm off to Christmas Town." Jack said.

"Sandy Claws?" Sora asked confused

Sora turned around and we huddled around him. Goofy looked over at the boy. I shook my head. Even I figured it out without the movie references that Jack was talking about Santa. The boy truly was hopeless some times. No wonder Riku teased him so much. It was fun!

"I think he means Santa Claus." Goofy explained.

Donald nodded and I leaned over to Twilight.

"I would be more worried about the 'again' part," I said, "You'd think he would've learned from the last time."

She smiled and nodded, I blinked as I noticed the fangs meant for a vampire. I shrugged it off as Jack jumped onto the ledge of the fountain and spun around, once, twice, three times around, spreading his arms wide and joyously towards the sky.

"Aren't these decorations wonderful? This year Halloween Town's going to handle Christmas too! But first! We have to visit Sally. She's working on something no self-respecting Santa Claus can do without. Come along…I'll show you!" Jack said excitedly.

I blinked and then shook my head. _'Well he said Santa Claus right that time, why not the rest of the time?' _I silently mused. Then I shrugged. It had to be for the humor effect of things. Besides, something were better left unasked because the explanation would just give me a headache or frustrate me, whichever came first. Knowing my luck it would be the headache. He turned around and started to walk away as we watched him leave.

"Halloween Town Christmas?" Sora asked scrupulously

I raised an eyebrow at the boys and crossed my arms as they looked around and got the full scope of what might happen if Halloween got its hands on Christmas. The sheer idea of what could happen left Donald and Goody quivering. Needless to say it wouldn't be good for anyone who believed in Santa or anything Christmas or holiday related.

"Want to go check it out?" Sora asking

Both Twilight and I chuckled as the other two slumped and sighed not even bothering to argue with the brunette. Sora looked between the two of them, before looking over at the two of us confused at the two completely different reactions. Jack having noticed that we hadn't followed him waved over to us, gesturing for us to pick up the pace.

"C'mon, hurry!"

We turned and skirted our way around the platform. I realized it wasn't like we had anything better to do anymore. We always got involved with the otherworldly affairs nowadays this was just second nature to help them out. Joining Jack on the other side we started to head over to the Doc's house. Sora decided that now was as good of time as ever to introduce the two of us to the Pumpkin King and Christmas Fanatic in Santa Claus Training… Wow, that's a really long title.

"This is Twilight and Ghost." Sora said.

He pointed to us pointing to us as he said our name. Jack looked over at us and smiled. I had a feeling that he liked our names because they were slightly dark and Halloween- like. He offered me his hand. I took it and shook for a moment. I feared squeezing too tightly because I didn't want one of his fingers to pop off. Twilight smiled and shook his hand after me though I could tell she shared the same sentiments as I did about his hand coming off.

"It's a pleasure to meet the two of you."

We both nodded, Twilight grinning like a madman, as he turned his attention to the door in front of him and pushed it open. Looking around at the room one of the most noticeably things, at least for a bookworm, were the many oversized books on the shelves as well as the gigantic one that was open with the bald man in the wheelchair. Half of his skull open. Sitting in front of it. Jack immediately went over to the small man.

"Hello, Doctor! Where's Sally?" Jack asked.

The bald man stopped scratching his brain and turned to look up at the impossibly tall Jack. I thought, _'A few years ago that would have completely weirded me out but thanks to AP Bio…'_ It was still a bit odd to see the slimy wet brain simply sitting out for the world to see whenever the Doctor had to scratch it but I'd learn to cope. Or maybe once this was all said and done and I was in therapy it would come up in discussion. Kidding, I doubted that I'd need therapy after all of this. I glanced over at Twilight who looked slightly green.

"I think I'm going to be sick" she muttered.

"Can't you see… that I'm in the middle of an experiment?" The doctor asked annoyed.

Twilight was saved as the doctor pulled the rest of his cranium down covering the soft grey matter before turning his mechanized chair around and rolling forward to the large table in the middle of the room. I glanced down as the terrible trio walked past lugging a heavy looking metal… leg thing towards the table. They stopped in front of us tired of carrying it, despite having moved it about three feet they started to act as if it were too heavy.

"Hey, this is way too heavy!" the red one shouted. See, what I mean.

"Then let's toss it!" the little witch girl suggested.

All three of them nodded but the Doc turned towards them. They froze in their tracks. They had been ready to pitch their package as far as they could but that one look from the professor stopped them. I wouldn't be surprised if they were on the naughty list. They were going to do a bunch of bad things in the future and they worked for Oogie Boogie.

"You do and you'll be sorry! Now bring it over here." The doctor ordered.

The three bent low before tossing it with a 'Heave-ho!' It landed on the table but started to spark erratically before exploding. The three kids took off their masks and started laughing and even I gave a small smirk as they ran off. The Doc slammed his hands on the table, reminding me of one of my old neighbors who always shouted at the young kids to turn down the darned music and go do something productive for a change.

"Imbeciles! Now my experiment is ruined!" He yelled.

I rolled my eyes and shook my head. _'Ya overdramatic old coot, it's just delayed not ruined.'_ I thought to myself. As we watched them run out the door, we turned our attention to the sewn up woman walking further into the room. Jack walked up to her with a bright beaming smile on his face. I blinked as we watched the silent exchange.

"Sally! Did you finish it? I want to show my good friends." Jack said excitedly.

"I'm sorry, Jack. I… I need a little bit more time." She said softly.

The girl shook her head slightly. Jack leaned back slightly and placed his hands on his hips. _'For a skeleton he's rather expressive. You think that once something became a skeleton all facial expressions were a thing of the past.'_ I thought, amused. Then I shook my head. I was focusing on the wrong thing.

"Ohh…" He said slightly disappointed, "Well, that's all right. Just as long as it's ready for Christmas!"

He leaned forward and placed a hand on her shoulder. I shook my head. Jack was really bad at reading the expressions of girls or anyone else for that matter. She wasn't upset because she didn't have it done. She was upset because he wanted to take control of Christmas at all. Everyone else was also a little apprehensive to his seemingly spur of the moment decision. He patted her on the shoulder and started to walk out.

"But…Jack…" she protested.

He stopped and turned over his shoulder with that bright smile on his face. For someone supposed to be creating doom and gloom the guy was the third happiest man I had ever met, Sora being the first and Demyx being the second. However, at least Sora and Demyx knew when to grow serious, at least sometimes they did.

"I'd best be off. I've got to go get Sandy Claws, right away! Wonderful to see you again. Good-bye for now!" Jack said.

I blinked as I watched him wave and walk out of the room. I shook my head and pinched the bridge of my nose before turning to Sora and sweatdropping as he stared off into space. He looked so deeply in thought. I was tempted to say something like 'I thought I smelled something burning' but then Sora might take offense. There was no need to make him mad yet. I was probably going to be doing that later on anyways.

"Go get Santa Claus…?" Sora asked.

He placed a hand on his chin. Sally obviously didn't notice his spaced out status. Don't ask me how but she completely missed it. I guess that Jack wasn't the only one who was bad at reading people. Twilight and I exchanged looks and sighed in exasperation. Hopefully when we met Kairi she wasn't going to be this… oblivious.

"Please, Sora. I'm afraid something terrible will happen if Jack goes through with this." Sally said.

"You can say that again!" Donald said.

"Sora?" Goofy asked slightly worried.

I continued to watch the boy as he stared into space before jerking around as the door opened. I blinked in surprise when Jack walked back in. He looked a little frazzled as he sent a look over his shoulder and at the door behind him, like he expected something to burst in at any moment and attack everyone. I frowned.

"Are those strange-looking fellows in the town square with you?" Jack asked.

"Huh? What 'fellows'?" Sora asked

My eyes narrowed. I knew exactly who Jack was talking about. I knew we now had a fight on our hands. I shook my head. We never got a moment's rest anymore. I sighed. We were the only ones going around and helping anyone so I guess that we had no choice. They needed help and we could provide. Besides, I liked kicking Heartless and Nobody butts; better to take out my frustration on them then on the others. Jack held up his hands as if to show his innocence.

"You know the ones who wanted to spoil Halloween _and_ Christmas? What are they called again…?" He paused, thinking and tapping his skull at the same time before continuing tentatively, "Heartless?"

Sora swiped his hand in front of him. There was a dark look in his eye at the mere mention of the creatures. I knew it was because of his difficult past with the creatures and with almost losing his best friends and his world because of them. It wouldn't put them too fondly in my books either. I had always been touchy about people messing with my friends.

"They're definitely not with us! But Donald, Goofy, Twilight, Ghost, and I can get rid of them for you. And then we can go see Santa!" Sora said excitedly.

Donald placed a hand on his non-existent hip and tapped his foot as I raised an eyebrow at the boy. He turned to look at us and jerked back at our expressions. He gave a sheepish smile, knowing he had gotten his priorities messed up. Santa wasn't going to be going anywhere soon and the Heartless posed a greater threat than finding out you were on the naughty list.

"But first, the Heartless!" Sora said quickly.

I shook my head at the boy a faint smile tugging at my lips as we started to head out. Stopping at the base of the stairs we looked around and spotted the Mayor, with his sad face on, yelling through a microphone at the Wight Knight Heartless. I doubted that yelling at them was going to make them realize that what they were doing was wrong and make them leave. No, we had to do this the old fashion way.

"Now here this, you… you things! Leave Halloween Town at once… by order of the mayor! Jack? Where are you? I'm only an elected official…I can't handle this by myself." The mayor groaned.

Jack moved over to the mayor as I summoned my sword, noticing the new design as the hilt was now black and the blade dull instead of its normal shine. Glancing over at Twilight's blade I noticed that not much had changed except for the fact that the blood groove now seemed to be covered in blood. I swept my blade into the side of one of the Heartless that had gotten to close, twisting so I could hit it again making it vanish. I yanked on Twilight's arm as she stepped onto the grates and was almost hit by a geyser. She in turn pulled me away from being squirted with acid by the dumb fountain, as we finished off the rest of the Heartless.

"How is Sandy Claws supposed to relax with all this going on?" Jack asked.

Jack waved his arm to gesture to the chaos all around us. I blinked as he turned to us and snapped his fingers, like we were dogs ready to listen to his every beck and call. I grit my teeth together. Just because he was friends with Sora it didn't mean that he could order us around. I mean I know the whole plot line goes with going to protect Santa but I mean come on, we didn't really get a say in what we did.

"That's it, fellows and ladies! Sandy Claws needs bodyguards. Are you up to the task?"

"Us?" Donald asked.

"Yeah." Sora said.

Sora nodded his head quickly, agreeing without even really thinking it over. He just really wanted an excuse to go see Santa, only this time Santa wasn't just some guy at the mall in a fat suit with a fake beard, this was the real Santa. I smiled and wondered if he had the imposter Santas at the mall as well or even if his world had a mall. Donald looked up at the boy and tapped his foot as I rolled my eyes at him. He really was just a kid, an excited one but a kid all the same. Jack waved his hand at us.

"All right, bodyguards!" Jack said.

He turned and waved a 'follow me'. He had already started walking away so we really had no choice but to follow him.

"Christmas Town is this way! The doorway is in the woods just past the graveyard!" Jack said.

Sora nodded and we started following the boy's as they walked out of the Town. We walked silently for a while before Twilight started humming 'This is Halloween'. I smiled as I listened to the girl, her humming seeming to break the spell and everyone began to talking or in my case humming along with her. It didn't take long before we entered into the woods, the trees bare of leaves and the shadows stretching out. All of us looked around as we entered into a clearing a single tree in the middle a Christmas tree door on it. Jack walked over to it, standing there and gesturing towards the door.

"Here it is! The door to Christmas Town. The spooks of Halloween can get so tiresome year after year. I wanted something new. And I found this!" Jack announced.

Sora leaned forward, his hands on his knees and stared at the door causing all of us to stare at him. I smiled slightly and shook my head in amusement. He had a childish smile of pure delight and awe on his face. He looked like we had set him lose in a candy store and told him to take what he wanted, a child's dream come true.

"Beyond this door is a world filled with wonders the likes of which you've never seen!" Jack continued

I leaned over to Twilight and elbowed her. She looked up at me. She rubbed the spot I had nudged and I wondered if I bumped her a little too hard. However, when she smiled at me sincerely I knew all was forgiven. She leaned close so she could hear what I had to say, even though she was the only one who would ever understand half of the witty remarks I made anyways.

"He's never seen my house during Christmas time, my dad goes nuts." I whispered.

"At first I couldn't believe my eyes! Everything was so fresh and exciting!" Jack rambled.

Twilight giggled quietly, trying to muffle it so that no one looked at her oddly. I chuckled as I watched Sora getting more and more excited as Jack continued before he couldn't take it anymore. His self restraint burst and the seams. His excitement was catching because now Donald and Goofy looked a bit anxious too. I smiled.

"C'mon! Just open it!" Sora ordered impatiently.

Jack turned the knob, pulled the door open, and bowed to us, causing Sora to run forward quickly. He immediately jumped and Goofy and Donald stopped and looked in confused. Both Twilight and I glanced at each other and gained maniacal grins plastered on our faces and ran behind the two pushing them in before we jumped in ourselves. All I remember of the trip was hearing Donald's surprised quack and Goofy's trademark yell as we went through the portal-like thing.

The next thing I remember was landing on Donald and then grunting as Twilight landed on top of us, in a dog-pile on top of Sora. I felt Twilight roll off of me and I pushed myself off of the duck. I glanced behind me as Sora raised himself up and caused the other two to roll off of him, Donald rolling into my leg knocking me slightly off balance. Donald pushed himself upright and was about to give Sora a tongue lashing but stopped as he stared in amazement at the town below us. It was bright and sparkling with snow and lights. I crossed my arms and smiled as I looked down at the town before glancing down at the boys and Twilight in amusement.

"So where's Santa?" Donald asked.

I laughed slightly since Donald was the supposed adult of the group. He was acting like a little five year old, anxiously awaiting a gift his parents promised him if he was well behaved. I would have believed it too if it weren't for the fact that I had seen him act like a mature adult and the fact that he was a duck and not a little kid. Jack who had walked up behind us pointed towards a large red-brick building in the town as I glanced back at him.

"In his workshop." Jack said.

"Shall we?" Jack asked.

He had walked in front of slightly before turning to face us. When we all nodded the skeleton walked away with Twilight, Sora, and Donald following him at a rapid pace. They all wanted to see Santa. I couldn't care less about whether I was considered Naughty or Nice. I glanced back at Goofy who seemed reluctant to come. I raised an eyebrow as he scratched his head. I smiled slightly.

"I don' think this is a good idea." Goofy said.

"True, it probably isn't but we gotta make sure they don't do anything too bad, hmm?" I asked.

I tilted my head and my smile widened as he nodded. The two of us started to follow the group down the hill at a calm, leisurely pace since neither of us were in no real hurry. Santa wasn't going anywhere just yet, thankfully. We quickly caught up to the group as they entered the town. But as we were looking around everyone jumped back as Heartless appeared in front of us causing the boys to be startled.

"Here too?" Sora asked.

"En garde, loyal bodyguards!" Jack said

I sighed and rolled my eyes. _'I don't remember signing up for this bodyguard thing.'_ My sword appeared in my hand but I had to jump out of the way of a charging jack in the box Heartless quickly. I stumbled slightly as I trip over something in the snow, sweatdropping as an over-sized candy-cane came out of the snow attached to my foot. I grabbed it, yanking it off of my foot and glancing up, only to chuck the thing at a Heartless that was attacking Twilight from behind, the candy cane shattering on the thing and causing Twilight to turn quickly in shock.

I got up and blocked a hit from one of the jack in the box Heartless, a dark orb forming in my left hand. I slammed the orb into the box making it disappear. It didn't take long before we had beaten all of the Heartless that had showed up, but everyone had had a slight slip up from either something hooking them in the snow or the snow itself. I brushed the snow off of my coat and walked over to the group.

"Christmas is in big trouble!" Donald said.

"In more ways than one." I muttered over to Twilight.

"Gawrsh, we can't let anything bad happen to Christmas." Goofy said.

Twilight was smiling but I rolled my eyes as Sora, Donald, and Twilight nodded in agreement. Jack came up behind us. I looked up to see he was pointing at the building, as if we couldn't tell for ourselves. I was tempted to give some scathing remark about being blind to miss it but it was Christmas… It's supposed to be about caring… Ha, yeah right! Family reunions for me were pure chaos.

"That's where Sandy Claws lives." Jack said.

We all turned to look at the red-brick building with many windows and blinking lights. I allowed Sora to go in first, remembering his excitement to finally see the notorious Santa Claus. Both he and Donald ran forward, more than eager to see the jolly man. I shook my head laughing as the rest of us followed at a slower pace. Donald and Sora had nearly plowed me down in a moment of their excitement but I didn't mind.

"There go the two kids. Who would've thought that Donald, the 'supposed' most adult member of the group turned into a kid." I said.

"You're just taking his place for the moment." Twilight retorted.

Twilight chuckled at the expression on my face until I smiled and placed a hand on my hip as we walked in the door. I waved one hand extravagantly in an over exaggerated manner. My eyes were closed for the moment and I had a look of pure exasperation on my face. But when Twilight started giggling I cracked a smile.

"Great. When can I be a kid again?" I asked.

Twilight smiled and shrugged as we turned a corner to see Santa. Santa was a short fellow with a gigantic belly, white beard, and tiny hands and feet, sitting in chair going over a long list of names. It was rolled halfway across the floor and it was rolled at the end, hinting that there were even more names on it than it looked. The man looked up at us with a cheery little smile.

"Well, hello everyone. Did you come to see if you're on my 'nice' list?" the man asked.

The boy's and Twilight walked forward. Sora was practically shaking from his excitement. I smiled, but then reminded myself to make sure he stay away from things like caffeine or sugars. The last thing I wanted to deal with was a sugar buzzed Keyblader. I don't think that even I would have enough patience to resist strangling him, despite the fact that he had grown on me.

"Your name?" Santa asked.

"Um, Sora, sir."

Sora looked slightly nervous as he looked at the jolly fat man, hoping that he would say that he was on the Nice list, though it didn't really matter because while you're zooming around in space saving the world Christmas is the last thing on your mind. The man looked down at his list as I leaned against the wall near the fire. I chuckled slightly, already knowing what Santa was going to say to him. Even if I didn't play the games I would have known.

"Well according to my list, Sora, seven years ago you told everyone you did not believe in Santa Claus. Oh, that is unfortunate." Santa said

He leaned back and stroked his beard as Sora slumped in disappointment before turning to Donald. The mage looked somewhat smug as he took a deep breath and puffed up his chest. I rolled my eyes. He had nothing to prove to Santa. The man already knew all about him, his short temper and all the things he had done this year.

"How about Donald, Goofy, and Twilight?" Donald asked.

"Cydney." she corrected absentmindedly.

The man in the red suit scanned his list and nodded with a smile causing Donald to leap for joy as Santa turned to me. I was slightly surprised that he was expecting me to want to know which list I was on. I smiled. I didn't need to know. I didn't really care which list I was on.

"What about you young lady?" Santa asked.

"I'm good."

I smiled and waved dismissively. Sora and Donald looked at me surprised for turning down such an offer but again, presents were just material things. In the end all the gifts I would get would fade into obscurity. Toys were forgotten or broken. Books were replaced. Clothes were outgrown. It was just a cycle that was going to happen. For me Christmas was about messing with my rather large family. Santa just chuckled slightly and nodded to himself, as if he had seemingly foresaw my decision to say not to check my name for his list.

"Am I on your list too? It's me, Jack!" Jack said.

The man looked at his list for a moment, very thoughtful and seemingly content, before jerking up in surprise. There was a look of utter horror on Santa's face as he looked at Jack. The Pumpkin King smiled weakly and waved at Santa. That didn't go and make Santa look any happier about having the King of Halloween Town in his living room. I wouldn't have been too pleased either.

"Jack Skellington?"

We all jumped and looked at a door as we heard a crash come from behind it. I blinked as Santa hefted himself up out of the chair immediately. He was devoted to his factory and his job, I decided as he headed towards the door saying to check what the fuss was about, regardless of whether or not the intruder could hurt him.

"What sort of trouble did you bring this time?" Santa asked angrily.

"This time?" Sora asked.

I rolled my eyes as Sora looked up at the tall bone man. There was an angry look on Sora's face for he knew he had been tricked once again by a friend to help them get what they wanted, yet he let himself walk into it every single time. He was a gullible kid but one with a very good heart. Jack threw up his hands as a sign of peace.

"It's a long story!" Jack said quickly.

"_Right_." I said sarcastically.

I headed into the factory with a sarcastic grin on my face. We looked around seeing nothing amiss in the factory and both Twilight and I glanced at each other in a knowing fashion. Santa having heard something so he was looking around wildly, trying to find the source of the noise and the disturbance in his factory.

"Who's there?" Santa demanded.

I winced slightly as there was the sound of breaking glass and watched as the terrible trio jumped through the broken pane. I glared at them as they jumped one by one through the shattered glass. Jack looked surprised to see who it was but all in all I could have gone without playing the game to know those little brats would have tried something against Santa just for the sake of saying they did it.

"It's Lock, Shock, and Barrel!" Jack said.

I walked back and leaned against the wall as Jack reassured Santa that we had nothing to do with those three. I closed my eyes and ignored the conversation that was proceeding between Jack and Santa, only opening them to look over at Sora. There was determination blazing in his eyes and I knew he wanted to set this right. He would have made a good cop, I decided, if he ever got out of the magic business merely for the sake of his love of justice.

"Let's catch those little pranksters." Sora said.

We ran off as Jack reluctantly agreed to do it, following us out the door. We walked outside and Goofy, Donald, and I crouched down next to the footprints that the bathtub had left behind. I sighed as the others straightened up and started running back towards the hill. I followed them quickly, the snow crunching beneath my feet as I ran after them. Jack got there first, on his impossibly long legs, followed by Sora and his hyperness. We all jumped through the door and continued to follow the footsteps as we made it back to Halloween Town. I blinked and sighed as the boys ran forward, moving past me, before I ran forward following them. I glanced back as we made it into the graveyard and Twilight gave a slight yelp, having tripped and knocked against one of the tombstones.

"Timber!" Twilight yelled.

I jumped back. The boys glanced back at us and the gravestones that were falling like dominos. They watched as they fell and turned to look at me as I pointed over to Twilight who scratched the back of her head with a sheepish smile. She stood up and we started to head through a previously locked gate to the Curly hill. We ran through to see the three beneath a large Heartless, Prison Keeper. They looked at each other, nodded, and jumped into the cage that dangled beneath the ghost-like Heartless.

I rolled my eyes at them as the Heartless closed the cage, yelling orders at it. It twitched for a moment before spinning around and shaking the cage. I blinked as it turned red and began to launch fire balls at us. Both Twilight and I ran to the other side of the curly hill as Sora and the others charged forward. I glanced over at the Heartless as I ran up the hill, jumping towards the Heartless and attacking it. It didn't take long before the one that had been trapped, Lock, was somehow transported back into the cage and it shook Shock into its rather large mouth, turning yellow.

"Guys! Get under the thing!" Twilight yelled.

It started to send its laser beams at us from its fingertips. We moved and I kept an eye on it staring straight up at the bottom of the cage, fervently hoping that I wouldn't trip on a pumpkin. Grabbing Sora's arm as he almost got nailed by a light blue beam. Sora leapt up, incredibly high and attacked the Heartless from below.

"Twilight, keep everyone's health up!" I ordered, "Donald, attack that thing with everything you've got! Goofy take care of Twilight!"

They nodded and Goofy ran over to Twilight as Donald and I started to attack it by magic. I blinked as it moved around the curly hill and popped out on the other side green. My eyes grew wide and I gave a small 'eep' as it charged me holding its mouth open. I jumped to the side and watched as it passed by me, Sora quickly following it.

He and Jack battering the Heartless for all it was worth and everyone was getting in some good hits as the fight progressed. I grunted slightly as I pushed myself up off the ground and looked up at the Heartless that, while still green, was now glowing and using all of the attacks from its previous forms. So we did the only thing we could, a full out frontal assault. While it took a while, with the six of us going after it at once we eventually did defeat it. I sighed, rolling my eyes, and propping a hand on my hip as I stared at the three troublemakers as they laughed.

"Let's go see if Mr. Oogie's ready!" Shock said.

"Oogie?" Jack yelled.

"Isn't he the one that tried to take over Halloween Town before?" Sora asked.

"That's him. Fellows, Ladies, I hope you're ready for trouble…" Jack said disgruntled.

"Don't we have enough trouble already?" Goofy asked.

Goofy raised his hands up in the air for a moment. The boys nodded and I smirked as both Twilight and I caught each other's eye, our grins widening, both thinking of what the future still had in store for them. We had a battle ahead and it was always a plus for the both of us to know what was going to happen before it actually happened. The boys looked around worriedly.

"But where would Oogie be?"

I slapped a hand to my forehead and sighed. There was really only one place that Oogie would go to start his revenge because his downfall started with the same man – Santa of course. The only place to find Santa was Christmas Town. The only way to get there was through the forest. Honestly, it was simple logic.

"Why, don't we try Christmas Town?" Twilight suggested.

The boys looked at the two of us in utter confusion for a moment before their mouths dropped open in shock before all of them bolted forward, startling me and making me jump back slightly into Twilight so that I wouldn't get trampled by the worried boys. We quickly followed them, after we had both regained our balance. We found them stopped in the graveyard talking to Sally, as we caught up to them we caught part of the conversation.

"…he's headed to Christmas Town!"

"C'mon, Jack…let's hurry!" Sora yelled.

Sora ran forward and the rest of us followed the boy-vampire. Jack nodded as he ran after us. I winced as Sora, who hadn't been paying attention to where he was going, ran into one of the gravestones. I chuckled slightly as I stopped next to him and turned watching the gravestones fall one after the other. Smiling, I looked down at the boy before holding out a hand. He hesitated for a moment before I helped pull him to his feet.

"Haven't I told you to watch where you're going before?" I asked.

He laughed and scratched the back of his head as he nodded. I gave a quiet smile and shook my head slightly at him as he ran off towards the Hinterlands. The boys passed me as I waited for Twilight who walked up to me with an amused smile.

"For someone who is constantly annoyed and worried about him, I think you have a soft spot for the kid." Twilight teased.

"I never said I didn't like him but… he's become like a kid brother to me in a way." I said.

"Now you've got me going sappy." I sighed.

I shook my head slightly, glancing over at the other girl amused. She laughed and we both ran forward catching up to the guys as they opened the door to Christmas Town. We didn't even stop we just kept running till we jumped into the open doorway, quickly followed by Sora and the others. I landed in the snow crouched down and moved out of the way as the others landed where I had been a few seconds ago. We all stood up and walked forward before stopping in surprise as we saw smoke coming from the brick building.

"That's Santa's house!" Donald said.

"Then we better hurry!" Twilight said.

We all nodded and ran down the hill. My eyes flicked back and forth as Heartless popped up, jumping onto the roofs of the elves houses I bypassed them and headed into the factory, the others following me. As we entered into the toy factory, it was far less bright and was darker, at least in décor, as one of the walls resembled half a roulette table. We didn't have much time to look at the new surroundings as Oogie laughed manically from the top of a ledge to our right, jumping down and knocking Sally down, who had just walked in.

"Jack Skellington!" The despicable bag of bugs turned and said mockingly

"Oogie!" Jack exclaimed.

I rolled my eyes slightly. _'Why are you so surprised, Jack? We knew he was going to be here or didn't you listen to Sally…again?' _I looked up at Oogie, trying my best not to cringe as bugs fell out of his seams and the fabric that was his skin squirmed. They definitely left this part out of the game. He was an eyesore to look at. Give me sharks, snakes, or even tarantulas I can handle that but worms, maggots, and grubs gross me out.

"You and I have a score to settle, Jack! Same goes for your little sidekicks!" Oogie said.

"Who's he calling a sidekick?" I growled.

My eye twitched. I didn't like being treated as some weakling. I was far from it and Oogie was going to find that out the hard way. Jack ignored me, but he tended to do that a lot. I mean I had no choice in becoming Santa's unofficial bodyguard. They didn't listen to Twilight or I when we suggested going to Christmas Town in the first place and even now so it came as no surprise to me.

"What are you planning to do with Sandy Claws?" Jack demanded.

"Who? Sandy Claws?" Oogie asked. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

I rolled my eyes as bug bag scratched his head._ 'He has no memory what so ever.' _Oogie placed his pouch like hands on his that said he jumped down onto one of the conveyer belts and stared down at Santa. I took a step forward and then remembered that if I tried anything he might have hurt Santa in an act of retaliation.

"And why is this roly-poly guy here? Time to go, grandpa!" Oogie asked.

I blinked as Oogie forced Santa up and started to drag him to one of the deadly ends of the conveyer, only to stop to look down at the leg that had dropped in front of him. He jerked towards where Santa was escaping towards Sally who was standing on a single leg and waving over to him. He started to run after the two of them but we got in the way causing him to stop abruptly. I sighed as he turned around and ran in the opposite direction heading up the conveyer belt. We jumped onto the conveyer as he lowered himself down on a cracked lift. He slammed his hand on something and the conveyers jerked to life, barriers popping up on either side.

"Stop!" Donald shouted.

The duck ran forward as the light around the 'safe' part of the conveyer was on. Another light turned on and he appeared on that conveyer belt. He looked around, wondering how he even got there in the first place. He stared at us as he stood on the conveyer belt for a moment. Twilight gave him a little wave.

"Huh?"

He ran back in and ended back on our conveyer as we walked forward, not going anywhere at all. This was going to take a lot more energy than I was used to exerting, especially with the way things were set up to be nothing but a hindrance to us while we tried to reach Oogie. I sighed to myself, knowing I was going to be dead tired. No, that isn't a pun even if we're still in our Halloween costumes!

"Not again?"

I titled my head as presents started to be dropped onto the conveyer, dodging both a large fist and bombs, we sent them back into the lift. The lift broke and he landed on our conveyer but as we attacked him he jumped back onto the lift and the conveyer suddenly picked up speed. The lift moved over to the other conveyer and we used the tunnels to get over there and started the whole process over again.

It took about two more times to fall through the lift, all the while with us dodging laser beams, giant hands, beating other Heartless, and sending presents into the lift. I raised an eyebrow at the still standing bag of bugs. He seemed to becoming undone at the seams. Surprised Oogie covered the hole that had formed and gave a relieved sigh as another formed on the other side. Being the idiot that he was he immediately let go of both sides, allowing all of the bugs to escape. My eye twitched as he gave an overdramatized death scene.

_'Too bad he didn't just yell out 'I'm melting!' or 'I'll be back'… That would be pretty funny…'_ I stretched my arms with a slight groan as we walked back out into the cold. Sora and the others stopped making me stop a few feet away, turning to look at them my arms behind my head. I raised an eyebrow as I waited for Sora to speak again.

"All right, Christmas is safe again!" Sora said

"Perfect! I'd better get down to business!" Jack said

"Leave that to Santa!" Donald shouted.

Goofy nodded as I lowered my arms and shoved my hands into my pockets. I couldn't believe he still wanted to go through with taking Santa's job. No one could out Santa the real Santa, least of all a man who was supposed to be the King of Halloween. The scary of Halloween simply didn't mix well with the happy and joy that was Christmas.

"Yup, you outta stick to Halloween and spooky stuff!" Goofy said.

"Jack? Here it's done."

We turned as Sally came out hiding. In her arms she held up the suit. Jack threw his hands in the air excitedly. He looked like it made his day. Yet he didn't notice the apprehensive look on Sally's face as she watched him take it from her. I made a face, knowing this wasn't going to end well. The man really never should have found the door to Christmas Town. He had been nothing but a thorn in Santa's side since.

"Wonderful! Why, I love it! Thank you, Sally!" Jack said excitedly.

Immediately he started to change into the suit. Sally wrung her hands together, helplessly. She cast us a look, pleading for us to do something to change his mind. Only Twilight and I took the hint. I was sure that Goofy caught on but Sora and Donald were too busy watching Jack admire his new suit. I had to admit it was hard for me to see a non-fat Santa in the flesh… Or rather in the bones since Jack didn't have flesh.

"Jack… do you really have to do this?" Sally asked.

"But I make a splendid Sandy Claws!" he answered.

I coughed _'bull'_ into my hand, Twilight giggling as she was the only one close enough to hear what I had actually done. Jack didn't even look up at her. He really was bad at reading women – any woman. Sally was being quite obvious on her stand on the subject and yet Jack still hadn't noticed how she felt about the whole thing. I looked over as Santa came out of his house.

"Listen here, Jack Skellington. You saved me and Christmas as well. And for that, I'm very grateful. But please promise you won't cause any more trouble! And about that suit! Don't even think about taking over for me again!" Santa said.

"I just thought you could use a little help this year, Mr. Claws. You must be exhausted from all the preparations. And… I wouldn't mind a second chance to get this Christmas thing right." Jack said.

The impossibly tall skeleton raised a hand. Both Santa and I sighed but for two completely different reasons mine being out of frustration, his being resigned since he knew as well as I was that Jack was determined and having the determined Pumpkin King after something was nothing but trouble for those around him.

"Yes, being Santa Claus can be tiring. But let me tell you something, Jack. Seeing the happy faces of little children when they discover the presents I've brought them makes it all worthwhile, year after year after year. And you, Jack… you love to make them gasp and see them shiver with fright. What if someone tried to take all of that away from you?" Santa explained.

The skeleton looked down and scratched his cheek. He obviously hadn't thought of it that way.

"We both have very important jobs to do, Jack. Mine is to take care of Christmas, and yours is to take care of Halloween. So we each have to do the very best we can. After all, you're the face of Halloween…Mr. Jack Skellington! The Pumpkin King! The Knight of Nightmares! And even though you're fascinated with Christmas, Jack… Halloween is your true specialty. Don't you see? Children rely on both of us to do our jobs. Halloween needs your attention… and I know Christmas needs mine… urgently."

The big man turned around and headed back inside but stopped as Jack seemed to find his scary self again and I raised an eyebrow. I sighed to myself and braced myself for a rant from Jack. I really just wanted to go to be. I was tired. I was hungry. And this really had absolutely nothing to do with either Twilight or I.

"You're right! I am the master of terror! And if Halloween has become too routine, all I have to do is think of something new that'll really make them scream!" Jack said

"Jack! Oh, Jack!" The mayor yelled.

"How the hell did he get here?" I asked

Twilight just shrugged with a perplexed look on her face as the short man ran up to Jack. We exchanged looks. This was the one part the game never fully explained. I mean the mayor just bam! Pops up out of nowhere and you're all like how the heck did he get here! No one knew about the door except for Jack, Sally, Lock, Shock and Barrel. Jack really didn't tell anyone else. I guess it was just a convenient loop for the writing staff.

"I've been looking for you everywhere! We must go over the plans for next Halloween! I can't do anything without your approval!" the mayor said.

"So true!" Jack said.

Jack walked past the short, who looked even shorter next to Jack. The mayor chased after Jack. Even I had to admit that Jack had a big ego and Santa just stroked it for at least until we came back. Then Jack would be at it again, causing problems and doing whatever he wanted to again for the sake of trying something new. He really needed to get more hobbies…

"Good luck, Jack Skellington." Santa called after the skeleton.

We watched the two walk off, Jack waving his arms around as he described something to the Mayor and I shook my head slightly as Sora placed his hands behind his head. He sighed but he seemed proud of the work we had done today. I felt like a charity worker. We did all of this work and really no one asked us to go and save the worlds with barely any 'thanks'. We just did… Maybe we're the ones who needed to get more hobbies.

"Well, there he goes." Sora said.

"Yes, and I've got lots of names to check and preparations to finish!" Santa said.

I blinked as I saw Twilight give off a soft glow that corresponded with Jack's suit glowing. I smiled slightly. The Keyhole had revealed itself. She smiled up at me and gave me a look that clearly read 'well what are we gonna do?' I smiled and looked over at Sora, motioning for him to pull out his Keyblade. He nodded in agreement.

"Jack, this is no time for joking!" the mayor yelled.

"We know, we know. You're only an elected official." Both Twilight and I muttered in unison.

We turned towards each other and burst out laughing as Sora unlocked the next gate. Neither of us expected the other to say it. It was just a moment of impeccable timing. It proved that the two of us thought a like, even if were did represent different things – being light and darkness. One couldn't exist without the other and I didn't know what I'd do without Twilight by my side. Well maybe I did, I would just be really bored.

"We better get going." Sora said.

"Before you do, Sora… I believe there's a friend of yours… who, if I recall correctly, was the one who told you there's no such thing as Santa Claus?" Santa said.

"Oh, yeah… he did say that." Sora said, thoughtfully.

Santa walked forward a little. Santa nodded and smiled. The man was a little odd, especially with knowing whether or not we were good or bad or the things we had done to get on the list that we were. Kind of like a stalker, except he was one of the good ones who actually left you things that you wanted instead of creeping you out or trying to scare away family and friends.

"Be sure to give him my very best wishes."

"I will, but…Do you know where I can find Riku?" Sora asked.

"No… but don't give up! Remember, if you believe in Riku, you will find him. Just as you found me." Santa said.

"Right!" Sora said.

I smiled slightly as I watched him nod in agreement with the jolly man. With that the five of us turned and headed back to the gummi ship.


	21. Hey I've got a tail!

Greeting from Japan people. I'm skipping the excuses of why this took so long to get out and letting you get straight to the story. I did have the shout outs here and there were a number of people but damn it went and screwed up on me and deleted them all. So thanks to everyone who added, reviewed, and read. Kita-san though my lovely beta doesn't get enough credit I wouldn't be able to do this without her.

Disclaimer: Simply because I've been gone for a while doesn't mean that I was able to get the rights to the material. Ghost and Twilight will always be mine though.

* * *

**Chapter 21: Hey, I've got a tail.**

As we all were transported into the gummi ship, everyone collapsed on their chairs from sheer exhaustion. It was close to three in the morning and the boys; I don't think they were used to staying up that late. Twilight and I on the other hand were a little better off being the college students that we were this was close to the time that we normally went to sleep in the first place. I smiled as everyone began to drift off and closed my eyes.

* * *

I groaned and covered my head to block out the snoring. After a few minutes I sighed, giving up. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and looked at the clock. Blinking in surprise I smiled slightly as I looked at the time, having slept in later than I normally did. Getting up quietly I moved into the kitchen and started to make breakfast. As I heard

"Pancakes!" Twilight yelled

I jumped but then sighed and looked up at the ceiling _'well at least Twilight's back to normal,'_I thought. The pancake that had previously been in the pan now stuck there and slowly becoming unglued to the ceiling. I looked over at the door as the others came into the room. I placed the frying pan back onto the stove and started a new pancake.

"Morning." I said.

"Morning." Sora yawned.

There was a plop as the pancake finally came unglued from the ceiling and landed on top of Sora's head. He blinked slightly before everyone started laughing and I walked over to the boy with a laugh. I lifted the half cooked pancake off of his brown spikes before lightly brushing the crumbs off his head. He looked up at the ceiling, warily awaiting any other attacks from foreign objects.

"Any more projectiles that might come down on my head?" Sora asked.

I chuckled before throwing the pancake out and setting out another plate full of pancakes, taking some for myself and sitting down. I was glad he had taken it all in stride. It's just the way he was but lots of other people would have gotten upset or would have freaked because the pancake 'ruined their hair'. He was just one of those people who could care less and with hair the way his was it wasn't hard to see why.

"Where to next?" I asked.

Sora didn't answer as he stuffed his face with food. I grimaced and mimicked wiping my mouth with my napkin. It took a few pretend swipes for him to realize what I wanted him to do. He took his napkin and wiped his mouth off. I was just happy he didn't start smiling or else the maple syrup would start oozing past his lips. Not a pretty sight to see, trust me.

"Someplace called the Pride Lands." Donald said.

"How long will it take to get there?" Twilight asked

I nodded and took a bite. Donald swallowed thickly, having problems getting down the thickness that was the pancakes and syrup. It was good to know that everyone was enjoying breakfast, though. I chased my pancake down with a hearty drink of orange juice. I hummed to myself contently. If every meal was as good as the past ones we've had I'd have to work even harder to fight the Heartless since I'd be bound to gain some weight at some point.

"Six hours." Donald replied.

I nodded and swallowed before standing up. Goofy cleaned up the dishes, as it was his turn this time to both clear the table and wash the dirty dishes. He never seemed to mind doing them either, unlike Sora or Donald who usually complained the whole time, resulting in Twilight standing over them wither either a newspaper or a squirt bottle, whacking or squirting when necessary. Twilight followed me and sat in her seat.

"You think we'll be able to finish this game any time soon?" Twilight asked.

I chuckled as she pulled the current monopoly game. With the rate things were going we were going to grow so bored of monopoly that it wasn't even going to be funny in the end.

"Probably not." I responded.

* * *

Six hours later, we made it to the next world, still not having finished the game. We stepped onto the platform that would take us down. There was a flash of light and we ended up there. I blinked confused slightly as I looked at the world in a new perspective. I shook myself all over, getting used to the feeling of fur, a tail, and four legs. Looking at myself the best I could to see the slim figure built for speed, tan fur and black spots. The silver wristband was now on my left foreleg. I stumbled slightly, still not used to the feeling of four legs, to the pool of greenish water to see the black tear-like streaks of a cheetah.

I looked over at Twilight to see a mostly white lion with a black underbelly, her silver music note necklace hung on her neck. She looked over to me and grinned. I nodded in agreement. It was kind of cool. Donald was flying and Goofy was a turtle, _'He's a turtle a lot,_' I realized. Sora was a dark lion. I jogged back to the others, not without a few stumbles along the way.

"Hey! Check us out." Sora said.

He looked around for a few seconds. I grinned but wondered what it looked like. Did it seem like I was the predator, musing the prey or that I was just smug? You never can tell with feline features, particularly when you are one. I glanced around, seeing nothing new to me since I've been in the landscape, though as Sora in the game and not personally, but it was nothing to be impressed by. It was just a bunch of rocks.

"This place is kinda creepy, though." Sora said.

My eyes narrowed as I spotted the hyenas that had surrounded us. One of them gave a crazy laugh and I rolled my eyes. They were hardly scary in the movie and hardly scary in the game. But in person I realized, that now, they could actually eat us. Luckily, Kingdom Hearts was a game that was working alongside Disney. They wouldn't kill anyone in a game, aside from bosses, but not even all the bosses die. I mean, Nobodies fade into Nothingness and Heartless never really existed in the first place.

"Heartless?" Sora asked.

"I dunno, Sora. I get the feelin' they might live here." Goofy remarked.

I glanced over at the turtle-dog. Goofy was still keeping an eye on the hyenas. He didn't trust them as far as he could possible throw them, if he could catch them, that was. They were fast little boogers in the game. I do recall many of the curse words I spared for them as I knocked them around as Sora.

"Don't mind us! Just passing through. We won't be any trouble." Donald said.

"Yeah, that's right!" Sora said.

I rolled my eyes at Sora the fur on my shoulders going up as the female hyena circled us. A low snarl escaped my lips as I glowered at her. I could feel my claws digging into the dirt beneath my paws. Twilight growled too. I almost laughingly shouted, 'Cat fight!' but I wasn't quite sure if a hyena counted as a cat… I'm fairly certain it's a dog but I can't quite be sure.

"Don't be silly. We'd love you to stick around for lunch." The female of the group

"Um… we didn't bring anything to eat." Sora said in confusion.

"That's not gonna be a problem!" The male, the one that didn't just laugh, said.

"Sora… we are the lunch." I cut in, beating Goofy.

Donald looked around for a moment before letting out a yell that caused the three boys to split up and run. I was squaring up with one of the other hyenas the fur on my shoulders going up, rolling my eyes_'where do they plan on going?'_ I turned as I heard Sora let out a 'whoa' seeing Banzai standing over Sora, Donald and Goofy were trapped in a corner and Twilight was standing behind me, watching my back. I turned back to my own hyena problem as there was a loud roar and I flicked an ear back to get a better grip on the sound.

"Man, that Scar's got the worst timing." Banzai complained.

"Just let him roar." Shenzi said.

"Nah, we better go see what he wants. Sounds like he's grumpy enough already." Banzai sighed.

"Fine." Shenzi sighed

I relaxed as all of the hyenas ran out of the cave. My fur settled back onto my shoulders and the ripping noise I had decided was my snarling had calmed to a slow and steady almost purr, but not quite. That could have gotten uglier than it already was; cheetahs weren't meant for fighting they were fragile speedsters. I sighed and both Twilight and I walked over to Sora. He waved a paw to the side, as if shrugging.

"I dunno what that was about, but I'm glad it's over! Everything's harder on four legs…" Sora groaned.

"Better start practicing!" The flying duck told us.

I rolled onto the ground as Twilight pounced onto my back. I chuckled, standing up and making her roll of me. For a moment she just lay there and look at me. Then she got to her feet and ran a few feet ahead before sticking her tongue out at me. She was trying to egg me on to practice for the sake of not looking like a natural at everything we did in the different worlds in front of Sora, plus, she looked bored, honestly. She probably wanted something to do.

"You can't catch me!" Twilight taunted.

"Says the lion to the cheetah." I teased.

I rolled my eyes with a smirk. Her eyes widened slightly and she started running again, I followed her at a leisurely pace for a cheetah catching up to her and tackling her to the ground. The look of surprise on her face was absolutely priceless. She looked completely taken off guard and I was pretty glad that she hadn't expected me to get her back for her glomp/pounce so soon.

"Caught ya." I declared.

She laughed and I stepped off of her as Sora and the others walked over to us. I grinned and we headed out into the gloomy Elephant Graveyard. I blinked as I heard a hissing and we all looked over to see a lioness running from a couple of Living Bone Heartless. Sora glanced over at us with a look of concern on his face.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Sora asked.

"Heartless?" Donald asked.

"What do we do?" Goofy asked.

Goofy looked around at all of us as Donald looked down at the lion from where he was hovering. None of them had even moved to go and help her in the slightest. I shook my head. No wonder Phil still referred to them as Junior Heroes… But then again I think last time we went there I was included in that count… I rolled my eyes as Sora ran in front of the lioness as he faced off with the Heartless.

"Stay back!" Sora ordered.

_'Always has to be the hero.'_ I thought with a shake of the head. We all ran forward and I launched myself at the nearest Heartless, slicing into it with the sword that had just appeared in my mouth, Sora and Twilight having similar experiences. As soon as the two Heartless were beaten my sword vanished I stuck out my tongue, unable to realize why I wasn't taking better care of my sword.

"Blech! That tasted horrible." I groaned.

Twilight gave a slight chuckle but nodded vigorously all the same. Hers either tasted just as bad or worse. I wouldn't be able to tell. I wouldn't want to exactly take her blade and stick its hilt in my mouth. I was having a hard enough time doing it for my own blade, why try and choke myself on hers too? I glanced over at Sora and decided that it was time to sit down. He didn't notice the lioness walking up to us.

"Definitely Heartless." Sora confirmed.

"Thank you. You really saved me." The lioness said.

"We're just glad you're okay." Goofy responded.

Sora tilted his head slightly as he looked around. He almost expected some random Heartless or Nobody to burst from the shadows. It could have been possible. One could never be too cautious when it came to things like that. But we could handle most anything that happened to pop out of the darkness. It was still best to be cautious though.

"Did you see any other Heartless around here?"

"Heartless… Is that what they're called? I'm not sure if there are any others… I don't usually hunt outside the Pride Lands." The lioness said.

"Pride Lands?" Donald asked.

Donald settled himself on Twilight's back. For a moment I wondered if she was going to try and bite him. She had the look on her face but she reconsidered. She was a lion now. She might actually like the taste of the Duck/whatever bird he was now. I didn't necessarily want to try and stop her from eating him either. I wasn't getting the way of those jaws. Sora walked forward stopping in front of her.

"Hey, do you know if a guy named Riku is there? Or some guys in black hoods? Or maybe this really big bully named Pete?" Sora asked.

She shook her head and Sora sighed. I watched as his shoulders slumped slightly in disappointment. He looked up at us with a dejected look in his eyes that made me want to groan. Why did he have to look so sad? It was annoying but also it made me feel really bad since there was nothing we could do since Riku or the King were nowhere to be found.

"Oh well, we might as well go take a look, anyway." Sora said.

"Wait… the Pride Lands are dangerous. Scar and the hyenas have made things unbearable for everyone. There's no food left. They've driven off the prey. We're about to starve." the lioness said concerned.

She turned away to keep moving without us. To her we were probably just some 'cubs' who got lucky in killing those things. We would never amount to anything in the eyes of a lioness. She was used to danger all the time. What we did, in her eyes, probably seemed reckless and stupid, like all other childish pranks and ideas.

"We can handle a little danger. You just saw us beat those Heartless, didn't you?" Sora reminded her.

She turned back to the young lion reluctantly. She didn't want to give Sora and 'bright' ideas. We met eyes and we both knew he wasn't truly going to become King but he was something special to this kingdom. Sora would bring back its rightful King once and for all and end the reign of terror held by Scar… Man… I really need to spend some time away from Sora. I'm getting all noble just thinking about how cruel Scar was.

"I guess you're right… You could be just what the kingdom needs. Maybe you can help us." She admitted reluctantly.

"Ya mean take on this Scar guy and all those hyenas?" Goofy asked.

"Scar?" Donald echoed.

Donald still sat perched from atop of Twilight. Her tail was starting to swish. It was plain to see she was growing agitated, either that or she just liked watching her tail move. You never can really tell with her. I had already lost interest in my tail a while ago. There was no need to mess with it for the moment. I rolled my eyes slightly.

"He took over when our last king, Mufasa, died." Nala explained

She looked over at Sora, hoping for some sort of an answer from him. Sora was lost but then again he got confused often. Bless his soul. I really wondered how he got along in his life if everyone had to explain everything to him. But then again he had his moments where he surprised us all with his moments of deep insight that was beyond someone like him and yet he still managed to bring it forth, always managing to ruin the moment by grinning or laughing afterwards.

"So you're saying this guy is your king. You want us to take down your king?" Sora asked.

She nodded and I chuckled. There really was no beating around the bush with this conversation. It was forward, straight to the point, just the way I liked it. Perhaps Nala was my kind of girl… Er… Lioness.

"Well at least she's straightforward about it." I chuckled.

Twilight nodded and laughed slightly, agreeing with me. Sora bounced over to us. Even as a lion cub he was as hyper and energetic as a puppy. I began wondering if he was somehow related to Zack Fair but then quickly dismissed the thought. I was getting Final Fantasy mixed with Kingdom Hearts again. You can't really blame me. The games were intermixed so sometimes I forget the characters belong to both games versus one over the other. Then again he was slated to be in BBS, so maybe I wasn't as mixed up as I thought I was.

"Wait just a minute." Sora called.

He entered back into the circle. We were having a small huddle a few feet away from Nala. She didn't seem to mind. What we were doing was sticking our noses into someone else's business and probably going to lead to trouble in the future for us. Oh well. Trouble seemed to either come to us or else we would find it.

"We can't just go around knocking kings off their thrones. Then again, if they see that I'm stronger than their king, maybe they'll ask me to be their next king!" Sora said.

My eye twitched slightly, my tail giving an agitated thump against the ground. I turned to glare at the long appendage, daring it to make another move. Now I know why dogs chase their tails. They're trying to stop the darned things from moving. I was tempted to claw at it but I resisted the temptation. Sora would have never have let me live it down if I did. Twilight would have told Axel as a form of blackmail, just to see me squirm for all the times I've teased her, even though she teased me right back. Plus I was never one for self-mutilation.

"Sora…" Goofy said warningly.

"I'd have to refuse, of course. Still, I'd like to see the Pride Lands, so you guys don't mind lending 'em a paw, do you?" Sora said.

Sora bounded off without even waiting for an answer from any of us. Both Twilight and I sighed as we watched the cub run off without a care in the word. Yup, he really was like a puppy, or the energizer bunny. He never seemed to run out of energy and we all know the commercial… He just keeps going and going, and going, and going and going, and well, you get the point.

"Uh-oh, there he goes again…" Donald sighed.

Sora was already chatting with Nala quickly informing her of his decision on the matter. She nodded along with his words. I blinked and watched as the lioness ran off. She was actually pretty fast, though I was faster based solely on my build rather than who I was. I was just lucky enough to become a cheetah. I just didn't have the same kind of stamina she did.

"She's gonna go on ahead and tell the other lionesses. We're supposed to meet her at a place called Pride Rock." Sora informed us.

We nodded and started out heading to the barren Savannah. Looking across the land we looked at the large rock formation in the distance. Sora bounced in an excited way and started running forward as I shook my head in amusement. The cub didn't get far when he was stopped be Shadows and Living Bone Heartless. The rest of us ran forward and I launched myself at the Living Bone's rider knocking him off, as it almost trampled Sora.

Without a second of hesitation I sunk my teeth into the creature not having time to summon my sword. The blade appeared in my mouth and I ran through the Shadows cutting them down as I went. As the last Heartless disappeared my sword vanished and I spat onto the ground trying to get rid of the taste in my mouth. It was almost as bad as just having the sword in your mouth. The two tastes combined weren't pleasant.

"Well that was annoying." I said.

Twilight shuddered slightly and we started to head to Pride Rock again. As we climbed up the rock formation we looked around at the multiple sleeping lionesses. We stopped seeing Nala coming towards us with an old baboon. I sat down as we waited for them to come over to us. I tilted my head slightly jerked her head towards Sora.

"That's him." Nala said.

The baboon came forward, getting into Sora's face, startling the transformed boy ever so slightly. Sora didn't seem to know what to do. He stared back at the baboon for a moment, startled and a little uncertain. He glanced at Twilight and I out of the corner of his eye before turning his eyes to Donald and Goofy but only for a few seconds each before he turned back to the baboon.

"Um…what?" Sora asked.

He turned to Goofy and Donald for a moment but his eyes lingered on Twilight and I. The lionesses perked up and my ears flicked back and forth as the baboon spoke to Nala, who listened carefully. She straightened up surprised before slumping, the other lionesses laying back down in disappointment. Sora tilted his head in confusion.

"What was that all about?" Sora asked.

Nala looked over at us, albeit hesitantly. I understood her concern in adding strangers, young strangers, mind you in the dangers that lurked in their world. She would feel bad if something happened to us, granted, nothing would because, seriously, when does anything terribly bad ever happen to the heroes?

"I told Rafiki you might be able to help us force Scar and the hyenas out of the Pride Lands. But he says it won't work. You see, whoever saves the Pride Lands will be our next king…and he has to have the right qualities." Nala explained.

"Meaning…"

Unsurprisingly to me, Sora was still confused. The boy looked over at Goofy for an explanation of some sort. I nodded. He couldn't depend on Twilight and I forever. He had to learn to use what he had, minus the two of us. Twilight seemed to agree with me for the moment. She yawned slightly. I knew she was just bored, not tired.

"I think she means you're not cut out for the job, Sora." Goofy explained.

I laughed quietly as he sighed. Even without playing the games I knew Sora wasn't cut for the jobs. Kings had to make hard decisions, pros and cons weighed in every favor. People would get hurt by one choice while others got hurt over another. That's just the way things were and how things would forever be.

"I'm sorry you came all this way." Nala said

"Hey, no… it's okay." Sora said.

"You'd better go before Scar finds out you're here. I'm really sorry." Nala cautioned.

I shrugged. The lady lion ordered us to leave so I saw no reason to stick around. Sora looked like he was going to protest for a moment before I glanced over at Twilight and we both started to get up. Twilight saw my logic. She saw no reason for us to waste our time somewhere we weren't needed. Besides, it was better not to tempt Fate and try and get eaten by hyenas.

"Let's go." she said quietly.

He turned to look at the two of us before conceding. He nodded with a sigh, knowing it was better not to argue since he had been overruled by Twilight and I. He had been trumped, not a good sign if he actually wanted to be King. But there was a reason the crown would go to Simba and not Sora, mainly because blood and the fact that Simba was a real lion instead of a visitor, plus we could add some mumbo jumbo about the divine right of kings but I don't really feel like giving a government lecture right now.

"Okay."

He turned and began to follow the two of us as we headed down the path to the savannah but stopped confused as he saw us stop before him. My hackles went up as I watched the three approaching hyenas. Glancing behind us I spotted another three having trapped us and my tail swished angrily as I glowered at them.

"Hey… a snack." Banzai said

"Snack? Nah, we got us a five course meal." The female, Shenzi, corrected.

The hyenas jumped up as the silence was shattered by a piercing gunshot-like roar. It only added to the tension of the moment and made me even more anxious. I stiffed and I heard a growl slip past my lips. We all looked over at the top of the angled rock. I saw two figures standing atop the rock. My tail swished angrily.

"Look at that, here comes Scar… the king." Banzi said.

My eye twitched as we spotted that unmistakable ugly face, even in lion form. At least we didn't have to see him in Atlantis. I think I might have had nightmares if we did. I mean can anyone else honestly picture him as a sea creature without cringing or crying? I know I really can't. I shook my head to rid myself of the thought.

"And Pete!" Sora exclaimed.

The older lion ran down the face of the rock agilely, landing in a crouch before heading towards us. I winced as Pete tried to do the same thing as Scar and epically failed, falling half way down. Sora just shook his head at Pete's stupidity. I relaxed slightly. Pete wasn't really that scary. He was just one of those comic relief characters. He couldn't hurt us, even if he wanted to.

"What are you doing here?" Sora demanded.

"Aww, the cute lil'l kitty's worried about me. If I were you, I'd be more worried about my friends!"

Pete taunted.

I glanced back at the other three as they faced off against the oncoming hyenas before turning. I felt my ears pressed against the sides of my head in a sign of irritation. My tail was swishing almost robotically, showing my tension and my unease with the situation at hand. The game may have been owned by Disney. Nothing bad had happened yet. But that didn't mean we still couldn't get killed, have our hearts stolen or get wounded at all. We had just been lucky so far. Luck could only get one so far.

"Go on, ladies… you've got some hunting to do." Scar said.

"The herds have moved on, Scar. We can't hunt in a land with no prey." Nala protested.

If he had had any I think Scar would have raised an eyebrow as he turned to look at us. I didn't like the look in his eyes. I glowered at him, gritting my teeth and showing my canines. I would have loved just to tear him a new one. I really could with the claws and the teeth. I was so annoyed with him that just looking at the expression that he was giving us made me sick to my stomach.

"No prey? Then what do you call this?" Scar asked.

I rolled my eyes. Honestly, wouldn't that be considered cannibalism? I mean, Sora was a lion cub. Lions didn't eat their cubs, at least I didn't think! I would really hope not. I mean, I get why Donald and Goofy looked like dinner but Big Cats shouldn't eat other Big Cats. I was sure we weren't on each others' menu or something.

"We're not prey!" Sora said indigently.

"Oh. Nice and fresh, too."

My eye twitched as he stared at us like a crazy. I sighed as Scar turned to the fat, blue, ugly lion that was Pete. Scar didn't know that getting involved in darkness was going to be the last thing he ever did. It was a shame but alas what can ya do? The bad guys never seem to listen to reason whenever the hero tried to save them at the last second. That would make the hero's job far too easy, wouldn't it? No character building would be involved.

"Well, they're all yours, Scar." Pete said.

With that he bounded off and Scar crouched low and began to pounce. My heart skipped a beat. He really intending on killing us. I growled darkly, daring him to even come near us. I tensed too, ready to counter him and give the others enough time to escape. I tensed and blinked as Nala jumped on him and held him down.

"Run!" Nala ordered.

We turned tail, dodging the hyenas as they charged, and ran down the path to the savannah Nala catching up to us. Sora had to work hard to keep up with her longer strides. She was bigger so she could go farther faster. I was just fast. I had the greatest of ease keeping up with her because of being a cheetah after all. They were wicked fast and so was I. I just wish I had more stamina than cheetahs had normally.

"Follow me!" Nala cried.

Once we got onto flat land and open space we took off like bats out of hell, quickly losing the hyenas as we crossed the barren plain. As soon as we thought it was safe we stopped everyone flopped onto the ground trying to catch their breath. A breather was nice. Nala was the first to regain composure before standing up.

"I'm sorry I got you involved in this." Nala apologized.

Both Sora and I stood up and I shrugged. What was done was done. There really was no going back after this. Everything had changed. It was like a game of chess. You can lose pieces but you don't get them back once you lose them or else the game would go on forever. But this wasn't just a simple game. Once a piece was removed it was like death. It was the end and unlike the game there was no 'redo'.

"It's no big deal." he said.

"Aw, it's not your fault. Sora wouldn't be a good king." Donald said.

Donald flapped up onto my back still regaining his breath. I wondered if Twilight and I simply looked like a perch to him. I mean he never landed on Sora or Goofy. Or perhaps we were just more comfortable to sit on? I dunno… Sora's head whipped around to the bird on my back with a sour look on his face.

"Hey! I had to give it a try, right?" Sora cried indignantly.

"So you _did_ want to be king!" Goofy teased.

Goofy chuckled as he stood up. One by one we were recovering from our bought with danger. Thrills like this were going to shorten our lives but it was going to be so much fun. Sora scratched his head with a paw out of sheer embarrassment and lack of anything else to do. Both Twilight and I gave quiet laughs to his mortification.

"Well… you know… Uh, Nala, isn't there anybody else who could be king?" Sora said sheepishly.

"There was… but he died… when he was just a cub. He was the son of our last king, Mufasa. If only Simba were here…" Nala explained.

The lioness shook her head sadly. _'If only you knew the half of it…'_ I thought to myself. Sora's head shot up as he heard the last part. He looked rather excited. He was glad that he could help because he knew that Simba was alive, just like Twilight and I knew he was. It was just the game of finding him that we had to play.

"Simba? But Simba's just fine! He was fighting right beside us not that long ago."

It was the lioness' turn to look shocked and her entire face expressed it from the wide eyes to the perked ears and the open mouth. She moved forward to interrogating the transformed boy at a lightning fast speed. She was eager to hear of news of Simba. It was dimly that I recalled that after this world Axel kidnapped Kairi before losing her to the darkness because she ran off and then lost her again to Saix.

"You mean Simba's alive? But where is he?"

Sora looked up at her hopeful expression but gave a sigh. He didn't want to disappoint her but his lack of knowledge on the matter was going to disappoint her anyways. It was obvious to see how much she cared for Simba, even after all these years of not seeing him. I wondered if Kairi felt the same way when Axel dangled Sora in front of her.

"That… I don't know."

Nala gave a quiet sigh of disappointment before forcing a smile onto her face. I couldn't imagine losing someone I cared about. That's why Twilight and I were going to fight until the last breath for Demyx and Axel. We couldn't bear to lose them. They were good friends, and perhaps a little more. But at least Nala was able to keep hopeful.

"Still…Simba's alive! I can't believe it… Please… tell me about him."

"Of course!"

Sora nodded eagerly. The feline's forced smile became genuine. Sora brought back hope for her, instead of letting her pine over the cub she used to know all those years ago. Unfortunately, Axel didn't quite have the same tact that Sora did. He was cryptic and mysterious which was probably what alerted Kairi to the fact he wasn't to be trusted. Either that or the Nobodies would have done it for him.

"But first, we should get away from Scar. We'll go through Wildebeest Valley. He won't follow us there."

"Why won't he follow us there?"

I jogged up to her as we followed her to the valley. It was a good question and now that we were in the game I couldn't remember if it was ever answered. Don't get mad at me. I remember the big important details. This was just one of those minor detail things. She looked over at me before turning back to the path ahead.

"He forbade anyone to go into the valley, including the hyenas. We don't know why, though." Nala explained.

I blinked and gave a slight nod before waiting for Twilight and walking beside her. Donald flew up ahead to talk to the others. He seemed to realize I wanted some time with Twilight. She was after all my best friend. The guys were great in realizing that although we were their friends, there were some moments where we needed some time away from them.

"How you doing?" I asked.

She glanced over at me with a sour look on her face, as if seriously asking me if I had really asked her that. I thought it was a good question to ask, considering all that we had been through this morning. It was going to be a lively day that was for sure. I couldn't wait until the final battle though. It was going to be kind of fun.

"Other than having someone wanting to _eat us_, I'm fine."

I blinked and chuckled before shuddering, remembering the look on Scar's face as he had stared at us. I caught a glimpse of Twilight's questioning look. She was probably wondering if I had finally lost the last of my marbles. She would be the only sane one left if I went because Sora's recklessness was bound to either drive her up the wall or commit a murder.

"He stared at us like we were hunks of meat, it freaked me out." I explain ed.

She nodded as we came up to the crevice. I gave a small whistle as we peered down the crevice. _'Damn, that's a long way down.'_ I thought worriedly. I glanced over as I saw Nala backing up before running forward and leaping, landing safely on the other side. I back up, shutting my eyes momentarily _'Don't think about it, just do it'_I told myself as I used the cheetah's powerful legs to good use following Nala, landing on the other side. I gave a relieved sigh and turned back to the others as Nala smiled over at me turning to face the boys.

"What's wrong?" Nala asked.

"We're never gonna make it." Sora yelled back.

I blinked owlishly. I managed to make it across so Sora should have been able to make it too. He should have realized that. Nala would have never have forced him to do something that she couldn't do. Sora and I were relatively the same size too so if I could jump he could jump. The logic was as simple as that.

"I guess Rafiki was right." Nala said quietly.

One of my ears had flicked back to hear her better. My eyes narrowed as I looked over at the others, specifically Donald. Honestly, he had nothing to worry about. Had he not noticed the giant wings keeping him in the air or the fact that his feet never touched the ground? My tail swished out of pure annoyance.

"Donald! You're a bird! You fly! What in the seven Hells are you worried about?" I roared.

The bird shrugged and flew over to us landing on my back. I resisted the urge to take a nip at him. Honestly, he forgot that he was a bird? He's always a bird. But then again… He isn't always a bird that can fly. I mean not unless you're using pixie dust but we don't use that in the second game, sadly enough.

"C'mon, it's not that hard! You can do it!" I cheered.

Twilight backed up slightly and gulped loud enough that I could hear it on the other side of the crevice before jumping over. Goofy was the next to follow and Sora was last and we started heading off. Nala decided that it was story time so she decided to tell us what happened and how things got the way they were as we walked on.

"When Simba's father, King Mufasa, died we were told that Simba died alongside him." Nala explained.

"Who told you that?" Sora asked.

I blinked as she stopped unnoticed by Sora until he had walked a few feet ahead before turning around as she looked down. I hovered close to Twilight but we were relatively close to Nala. When she had stopped walking so did we. It was only far to her. Sora and the others weren't as considerate to her or her feelings.

"Scar." She replied.

I blinked as an ear flicked back and I turned to see Rafiki walking up a rock. I twitched slightly. Never in the game did it explain how he got out here, how he knew where we were or even how he knew what to say. It was just one of those small details that bothered me. Twilight seemed to be just as agitated with his sudden appearance.

"It is time." Rafiki declared.

"It must be Simba! Sora! Hurry!" Nala cried.

Nala was excited as she started running forward. Simba was waiting for her. I rolled my eyes chasing after her. _'How in the world did she get Simba out of 'it is time' for all we know he could've meant something else? Except he didn't but I know that and Twilight knows that, how does she know that? Dammit I'm rambling. Brain shut up already and run.'_ I thought to myself.

I gave a frustrated snort as I caught up to the lioness, we banked sharp turns and corners, all the while dodging Heartless that were getting in our way. I stopped and turned waiting for Sora and the others to catch up and chuckled at their winded breathing. Twilight looked around, looking for something that obviously wasn't there.

"Wasn't Nala here with you?" Twilight asked.

I blinked and looked around, realizing that she had in fact vanished. Who knew these characters were so good at playing Houdini? They would probably put him to shame. In fact, he's probably tossing in his grave now because everyone else still alive were doing magic tricks and vanishing acts that he can no longer attempt.

"Well, she _was_." I said.

"She can take care of herself." I shrugged.

Twilight nodded before we followed Sora further into the lush green Jungle. I wasn't really paying attention to what was going on and blinked when I saw that the others had stopped just outside of the Oasis and there was a loud roar, followed by the familiar warping sound of Heartless fleeing. I looked up to see a large male lion with a bushy reddish-brown mane standing on a log. Sora and the other two boys ran forward towards the lion.

"Simba!" Sora happily cried.

The older lion crouched down defensively. My eyes widened slightly in surprise as Sora skidded to a halt hastily. The hair on the back of my neck stood straight. I could feel my lips curling into a snarl. My animal instincts were cautioning me of the fight. The growl coming from my lips was evident of that.

"I-it's me…Sora! Donald and Goofy are here, too. Oh, and that's Ghost and Twilight." Sora explained quickly.

The older lion looked down at the cub suspiciously for a moment and I sat down watching him, ridding myself of the dark snarl. Stupid instincts… Honestly, I knew that it was going to be okay but the instincts were cautioning me to be careful around the big lion. It was probably because he was a lion that I was so set on edge. Plus, he was bigger than I was but I was faster.

"Sora! Donald! Goofy!" Simba said in surprise.

Twilight and I laughed as he pounced on Sora and rubbed his face on the smaller cat's stomach. Sora weakly pushed against him with his paws but it did no good for the transformed lion cub. The lion leaned so that he was closer to Sora, who was still on his back. Sora gave a sheepish smile as he looked up at Simba.

"What happened to you?" Simba asked.

"Help! Simba, Heeeelp!"

"She's gonna eat us!"

Those were only things that answered Simba's question. I looked back at the lion, waiting for him to play the part of the hero. Honestly, most of the men in these games had a hero complex. They always had to play the part of the hero and save the day and rescue the damsel in distress. I'd rather die, or have my heart stolen, than wait for someone to rescue me.

"Timon? Pumba? Something must have happened in the jungle! I have to go help my friends!" Simba cried.

I rolled my eyes. I really couldn't believe he actually said that line. _'Why may I ask did you have to explain that part instead of just doing it?_' I asked myself silently. If Nala was really going to eat them then they would have been eaten already because he was standing around declaring that he must help his friends… Oh the irony. I blinked before watching the running lion vanish into the tree line.

"That must be…" I trailed off.

Sora ran off and both vanished into the jungle. I was being ignored by them, either that or they hadn't put two and two together to get that it was Nala that they were talking about. Then again they too had the hero complex so they were off to save the day of just another evil. Ah, a hero never rests. Luckily heroines know when to take a break and when to jump up and save the day.

"…Nala." I finished quietly.

I sighed before looking over at Twilight who was the only one left in the Oasis with me. She hadn't run to the rescue either. We exchanged a look with one another and sighed, our shoulders slumping and our tails swishing ever so slightly. These guys were going to run us ragged by the time this was all said and done.

"C'mon, we better go make sure they don't do anything stupid." Twilight sighed.

I got to my feet and started to follow after her. I shook my head, feeling that my tail was shaking too. It was going to be really hard to get used to this. I knew that once I was I was going to have a hard time adapting to not having a tail when I was human again. I now know how Beast feels. It was probably pretty annoying for him to get about that he was going to be awkward when he was human again.

"That's easier said than done." I grumbled.

"You say that and yet you still care enough about them to go after them." She reminded me.

She laughed as she looked back at me. I rolled my eyes slightly as we caught up to the others to see that Nala and Simba were already fighting each other. I had that sudden urge to shout 'Cat fight' again but I don't think it would have gone over well with our current audience. Simba finally ended up pinned on the ground with Nala on top of him.

"Nala?"Simba asked in surprise.

I rolled my eyes slightly as she backed off showing confusion on her face. Regardless, she allowed Simba to get up to his feet. She still kept her guard up because she had been taken back by the fact that Simba knew her name in the first place. He had grown up. He was no longer the cub she used to know and used to pin to the ground all the time as cubs.

"It's me! Simba." He insisted.

"Simba!" Nala cried.

She stared had at him for a little longer before a grin crossed her features, before her exclamation of pure delight. She was a bit quicker on the draw when it came to adding two and two than Sora was. They butted heads because that's obviously what you do when you don't see anyone for a long time. You butt heads. Let this be a lesson to all of you.

"You are alive!" she sighed in relief.

"Hey! What's goin' on here?" Timon asked

I chuckled as we walked behind the confused warthog and meercat. They were obviously lost in the plot line. They turned around only to scream and run over to Simba, who looked down and smiled at his fearful and trembling friends. I mean I would too I looked like an appetizer to a couple of big cats. I shuddered as I recalled the look Scar gave us. Ugh… Creeper.

"Don't worry. They're all friends of mine." he explained

The meercat stepped away from Simba, albeit hesitantly. Like he expected us to just lunge at him and swallow him whole or something. As tempting as the lunging idea sounded, for the sake of just scaring the crap out of someone, I wasn't in the mood to eat something live. I probably wouldn't even look at meat the same way after this.

"So that means… nobody's planning to eat anybody else for lunch, right?" Timon asked.

I laughed at his hesitance. Sora and Donald nodded. Twilight gave a slight giggle. Of the five of us, Sora, Twilight and I were the only ones able to eat someone. I mean, not unless you wanted to include Nala. But it was only because the shapes we took on. Turtles and birds don't eat meat, or at least they're really not supposed to. I suppose they could if they wanted to but they just weren't going to.

"You're not on my menu." I told him.

I looked over at the shaking Pumba, flashing him a toothy grin. Then I grimaced. Probably not the best idea, since my grins were now more toothy and sharper than they are when I am human. I couldn't wait until I was human again. It meant no more tails, no more toothy grins and I think I have fleas… Ew… Okay, this officially sucks.

"Are you sure they don't wanna eat me like I'm some kinda pig?" Pumba asked.

"We won't… but you are a pig, right?" Sora reassured the shaking warthog.

Pumba had stopped shaking and whipped around to glare at Sora. I wouldn't have been surprised if something in Sora didn't wither inside. The look was dark, angry and hateful at the word pig. We didn't need him launching into a narrative about his past and how no one wanted to be around him because his gas was nasty.

"Call me Mr. Pig!" Pumba yelled indignantly.

Everyone laughed. After we were done Simba leaned down so that his mouth was level with Timon's head. For a moment I dimly wondered if Simba was going to bite his head off but then I remembered that this was a game that Disney helped make. They didn't show deaths in Disney but they did promote smoking, gambling, evil step parents, implied deaths, corpses and well… you know the list could go on but seriously. Censorship was getting really bad these days if all that could get through. …Thank God, damn censors.

"Could you guys excuse us for a few minutes?" Simba asked.

"Why am I not surprised?" Timon sighed.

The meercat threw up his hands and shrugged. We watched Nala and Simba for a few seconds before Timon and Pumba showed us another route into the Oasis, where I headed off to lay next to the lake, shutting my eyes for a quick cat nap. I knew we would need our strength before the final battle because of the stupid hyenas. I almost lost to them the first time I fought.

* * *

It was later that night, near dawn in fact. My nap had been going longer than I had intended, and I woke up to see Simba standing at the edge of the Oasis, staring at the sky. I sighed slightly as he had a conversation with his cloud papa. The cloud Mufasa vanished after a little bit and Simba glanced behind him. I stretched.

"You can all come out now." Simba scolded.

The others came out with sheepish smile. I yawned and stretched a little, relishing in the feel of my muscles waking up. It felt great. My tail was swishing in contentment and this time I wasn't at all annoyed with it. I was just worried that if someone brought out a string or a bowl of milk that I would start purring.

"Hey, I wasn't hiding." I told him.

Simba gave me a brief smile, appreciating my honesty in the matter. I made no attempts to hide myself because, well I was there first, granted I was sleeping but I was still there. And there was also the fact that Sora and the others were already spying in on the soon-to-be-King, even though Simba was going to take to them about it anyways.

"I'm going back to face my past. I could use your help." Simba said.

"He really is a king…" Timon said in astonishment.

I rolled my eyes but smiled slightly and looked over at Twilight as she came over. '_Ah only in the video games could such a dramatic sunrise come, right when you need it.'_ Twilight butted her head into my shoulder playfully and I smiled at her before we turned to the others following them to the savannah, killing and dodging Heartless the entire time there. As we came on the barren land Simba climbed up a rock to get a better view of the situation, I was in desperate need of an aspirin as Twilight and Timon had gotten into a philosophical debate about Hakuna Matata. I jogged up next to Simba as he gasped in shock. I narrowed my eyes, feeling my tail swishing angrily.

"Doesn't look so good does it?" I asked.

I jumped down from the rock and he blinked down at me. He hadn't expected me to be so upset about the land that was his. I hated seeing how terrible this place looked. The game hadn't done it enough justice. The dirt beneath my feet was rough and dry. The trees were cracked. I could go on but this was ruffling my fur enough.

"Wait a minute. We're gonna fight your uncle for_this_?"

I didn't even listen to Simba's answer as I sighed, making paw prints in the dust with a heavy heart. Twilight came over next to me. She knew how I felt about this. It made me mad to hear about the rainforest back home to be chopped down. I recycled all the time and I threw a fit if I found out that people wasted the valuable resourced that our planet had provided us with.

"Environmentalist." Twilight stated teasingly.

I chuckled slightly for a moment. She knew me as well as I knew her. She too hated seeing something like this. Her fur wouldn't be as ruffled as mine but it still made her mad. I knew that we would both take these frustrations out in our next fight but until then we had to bottle it and let it simmer. I almost feel sorry for the next guys we run across… Almost, not quite but almost.

"You betcha." I declared.

I watched as Simba ran off ahead and we all took off after him. As we ran I dropped back to Twilight. We ran in pace with one another. We could have gone faster but we were conserving our energies. Neither of us had a seemingly endless supply of energy so we had to budget what we had. I still think he's the energizer bunny in disguise.

"For an environmentalist, you sure like your cities." Twilight said.

"Well, I like being a contradiction." I said.

I chuckled again. She laughed for a moment before staying quiet as we headed up the path to Pride Rock. We spotted Simba facing off with Scar. The fight had just started so neither of us had missed much thanks to our leisurely sprint, besides, the plot could progress without us. We were just add on characters.

"Simba's the rightful king." Nala declared.

"The choice is yours, Scar. Either step down or fight." Simba threatened menacingly.

Scar had started to back up as Simba came forward. He kept going until Scar's back was forced against the cliff wall. Scar was truly backed into a corner. I snorted. The irony of this was greatly enjoyable. He was the one trying to trap us earlier and now the tables had turned. He was the one trapped.

"Must this all end in violence? I'd hate to be responsible for the death of a family member, Simba…"

"Like you aren't already?" I muttered

"I've put the past behind me." Simba said.

If I had had them I would have raised an eyebrow at the smug expression on Scar's face. I knew he still had some cards left to play before he would ultimately lose. His defeat was inevitable because of Disney and their love of happy endings for the good guys. Scar was not a good guy so there was no way he would win. Disney logic for the win!

"But what about your faithful subjects? Have they?" Scar asked.

"Simba, what's he talking about?" Nala asked, confused.

Scar circled around Simba who was staring at the ground. I growled. Now was not the time to start second-guessing. Now was time for action. Simba had to realize it wasn't his fault that his dad died. His dad chose to save him. His dad would have escaped had it not been for Scar in the first place and Scar's lust for power.

"Go on. Tell them who's responsible for Mufasa's death!"

"I am." Simba said quietly.

The others, excluding Twilight and myself, straightened up surprised as Scar backed Simba up Pride Rock. The tables had turned once more. Now Simba was the one being forced between a rock and a hard place but I knew that if he actually tried he would have been able to get out of said hard place. He just had to push a little harder.

"He admits it! Murderer! If it weren't for you, Mufasa would still be alive. Do you deny it?" Scar ranted.

"No! But it was an accident!" Simba cried.

"You're in trouble again. But this time, Daddy isn't here to save you. And now everyone knows why!" Scar roared.

Scar continued to back Simba up the cliff. I jerked forward as Simba slipped off the cliff, stopping myself from going to help him as Scar looked down at the other lion and said something that no one could hear but it apparently pissed Simba off enough as he launched himself back onto the cliff, pinning Scar beneath him.

"Murderer! Tell them the truth!" Simba yelled.

"It's kind of hard for him to tell us anything when you're crushing his wind pipe." I told Simba.

Simba looked at me in surprise, not expecting anyone to say anything. He hadn't realized that we had moved closer to him. Nodding he adjusted his paw slightly, but still made sure to keep Scar pinned down. The man was insane. He deserved to know that he had hurt someone so a little pain was enough to press a reminder to him.

"I…killed…Mufasa!" Scar said

My eyes widened as the three hyenas jumped Simba. I ran after them knocking one off of the lion and swatting at one of the others that had gotten too close to me. I knew I wouldn't be able to take them out on my own. They were fast, annoying, but fast. Being a cheetah had its advantages but its disadvantages as well. I could only be so fast for so long. Sora ran forward to help.

"A little help here!" I called for the others.

"You go get Scar, we'll handle these guys." Sora told Simba.

He nodded to the two of us and ran into the cave. I blinked as the next thing I knew hyenas were flying in the air via being pummeled by a warthog with a yelling meercat. I suppressed a laugh as the hyenas turned their attention to the two and chased them into the cave with us following them. We were going to finally get some revenge on those hyenas.

"I call crazy." I said loudly.

"Which one's 'crazy?'" Twilight asked.

Twilight glanced over to me with an odd look on her face. I blinked for a moment trying to remember his name before it came to me. I really needed to go and re-watch the Lion King. It's been so long that I was forgetting character names. That was a horror in itself. You know it's a sad day when you started to forget the names of Disney characters.

"Ed."

"You want a little help?" She asked.

"Sure." I shrugged.

We laughed and started tormenting the poor hyena… In other words, we kicked his ass and sent him packing out of that cave with multiple bruises and a pride that was barely left intact when we were done with him. It wasn't long before the other hyenas were gone as well. We made the quickest work of our victim. As soon as they were out of sight Sora turned to everyone.

"Where's Simba?" Sora asked.

I glanced at the boy and ran up the rubble 'stairs' without answering him. I heard his indignant huff as I raced past him but all it did was fuel my smirk. He should have taken my silent hint. Twilight was close behind me but she still gave me enough room in which I could stop in an agreeable amount of time without causing a dog pile to form either on top of or behind me.

"This way." She called.

I blinked as we entered into open air and kept moving. I allowed Sora and the other boys to move ahead of me and Twilight. We stopped just below the actual fight. Our heads popped over the ledge to see if we had an opening of which to take before we simply leapt in and possibly got our heads ripped off by the vicious lions fighting. I glanced up.

"Simba!" Donald yelled.

"This is his fight, Donald." Sora said.

Sora raised a paw to hold back the worried duck/bird. I flinched as Simba sent him over the edge to the long drop. It was a good thing that we didn't have to see the body. Sora and the others running up behind the other lion as I slowly stood up only to get knocked back down by Pete coming up. I snarled darkly.

"I hate bullies." I growled angrily. "Can't I just get rid of him now?"

Twilight crouched down next to me to prevent me from shoving him off the ledge. She sighed and shook her head in disagreement, though she obviously wanted to do it as much as I did. He was annoying and rude. You can't really blame us for disliking him. I don't know a single person who does like him, aside from the fact that he's the comedy relief character.

"As tempting as it might be right now, he might show up in the next game and we don't want to ruin anything, just yet." She said regretfully.

I gave a frustrated sigh but settled for sitting back down and glaring at Pete, the entire time he was here ignoring the entire conversation, just planning how I was going to hurt him when I got my hands on him, not that I would. Twilight had a point he might show up in the next game. I blinked as a barrier popped up and I sighed before settling down. Twilight tilting her head at me, confused.

"Aren't you going to help them?" Twilight asked.

I smiled slightly, shaking my head. I was already getting comfortable on my rock. There was no way I was going to get up now. Besides, the barrier was up now. It wasn't like we could get in anyways, even if we wanted to. Sora and the others would understand that we couldn't get in because of the barrier. They were just going to have to be on their own.

"Let them handle it, they've got to be able to fight on their own if we ever get separated. They can't rely on us all the time. Get it?" I explained.

She stared at me confused for a moment before brightening up and nodding. I sighed again and glanced up as we heard the fight start. A part of me was worried. Sora nearly got killed earlier and I had jumped in. This time he was going to be left exposed, a little weaker than before. But he had to prove he could fight on his own.

"All we can do now is wait." I said.

"You're going to be a worrywart the entire time aren't you?" Twilight teased.

She glanced over at me with a smirk on her face. I blinked at her before laying my head on my paws. My ears were pressed flat against my head. My tail was swaying once more, showing my agitation. This was going to be a very long fight. But again, all we could do was wait… Man, I wished I at least had a DS or something to kill the time but then again you can't really do much with paws.

"Shut up." I grumbled.

* * *

I lifted my head as I heard a thump and glanced over at Twilight as she stopped her worried pacing and looked up as the barrier disappeared. I stood up and smiled as she ran up there and heard a surprised yelp. I blinked and ran up to see Twilight on top of Sora. If she was in human form she would've been hugging the life out of him.

"I was so worried about you guys!" She cried.

"And I'm the worrywart?" I taunted.

I laughed and nudged her off of Sora. She chuckled and grinned sheepishly as we headed down off of the cliff. I tilted my head as we walked out of the cave and Simba headed up. He paused for a moment before roaring the other lions joining him shortly after. My eye twitched slightly as Mufasa showed up and a stream of sunlight down onto Simba as Twilight glowed slightly and Sora summoned his Keyblade to unlock the next gate.

"Hey, what's with the light show?" Timon asked.

"We have to say goodbye for a little while." Sora said.

"I'll run and tell Simba." Pumba said.

Goofy shook his head in disagreement. I nodded along. There was no need to go and drag Simba into this. He had years of his uncle's rule to go and correct. He was going to have his hands… er… Paws, full for a good long while. Besides, we were coming back to give a check up to the world soon anyways. It wasn't like we weren't ever going to see him again.

"Aw, he's prob'ly busy. Just tell him we'll be back soon." Goofy said.

I rolled my eyes slightly as Timon waved his arms dramatically. If I were a drama teacher I might give him a B for his performance. He might have been able to ham it up a little bit more if he just applied himself. I shook my head and tried to keep from laughing at the thought. People would look at me weird if I just started laughing for no apparent reason.

"Oh, that's right… he's king now. He's gonna be so busy he'll prob'ly forget all about his two best buddies." Timon said dramatically.

Sora smiled at Timon. He walked over to the meerkat. I resisted the urge to yawn and settle myself down for a cat nap. I was a little tired after this but it wasn't because of physical over exertion. It was just because it was a long day and the time was starting to catch up with me. I spared a glance at Twilight. She looked the same.

"Well, you always got Hakuna Matata, right?" Sora asked.

"Guess so." Pumba said.

"Whaddaya mean, 'Guess so'? What if he forgets to tell the carnivores who we are? One look at you, and you're a pig roast." Timon said indigently.

Timon had whipped around with a wild look on his face. His hands were on his hips. He looked like he was about to start to scold someone at any second. Just give him a reason and it would give him an excuse to rant over something or another of a similar topic. I laughed, since I couldn't hold myself back from doing so.

"That's _Mister_ Pig Roast." Donald said teasingly.

"Same thing! And I'm not sticking around to be anybody's pork dinner!" Pumba yelled.

With that he ran off, leaving me laughing. Had I been human I might have been clutching my side from the sheer force of my laugh but I had to settle for my tail swishing like crazy. If it weren't attached I might have just cut the stupid thing off. But it was so I knew that if I did so it would hurt… A lot. So cutting it off wasn't an option.

"Pumba!" Timon yelled after him.

I glanced over at Sora. He had a small smile on his muzzle and he had an apprehensive look in his eyes as he thought about something only he knew about, or so he thought. Man, knowing about his past this intensely makes me feel like a creeper. I know him almost as well as Donald and Goofy do because of the game…

"You can never forget your true buddies." he said quietly

I blinked and Twilight watched as my face went blank _'That's what you think Mr. I-forgot- everyone- and- everything- beforehand-__**including**__- Riku- and- Kairi. Shall we not forget everyone you met on the trip before Castle Oblivion as well as inside of the Castle. But every once in a while you say something good.'_I sighed as Donald cast the magic that would get us back onto the gummi ship.


	22. Yep, You Lost Her

Your regularly irregular scheduled program has returned. Sorry about the long wait folks, real life hit me and my lovely, wonderful, I can't sing enough praises for her, Beta, Kita-san. Me, I'm in Japan and was working on NaNoWriMo last month (I won by the way!) but still I didn't get the chapter back until just recently due to issues that Kita's been having on her side, which is no one's business unless she decides to tell you. Also don't go blaming her for the delay either I could've put up an unbeta-ed chapter and replaced it with the worked on one later but didn't. So, if nothing else I have to thank you guys for your unending patience with me and being willing to even wait for an update at all and not just giving up. Also thanks to the newcomers (individual thanks shall come later just like always) to actually digging through all the stories that had probably buried this one and choosing to read it.

Shout outs: Nerxie, ars-nobody, Alexandria Volturi, Kora Bloom, BAYALE, kingdomdisney, kh2 fan13, 123anna123, punkrocker4139, SpringBorn, XionAmmy, Kawaiikitty513, burry and bunny, Flyteless Kitsune, jennyz, Kitty MoonStar, Sololight, 14darkness, King Yazoo, snow642, and Angels Cry Tears of Bood

Disclaimer: Simply because I'm closer to the source now does not mean that I have managed to get the rights yet.

* * *

**Chapter 22: Yep, you lost her.**

There was a flash and I stretched. Never before had I been so happy to feel my limbs. I had new appreciation for four-legged creatures. I don't know how they did it. But I can easily say I can swim with the best of them and run with the fastest. I grinned with almost a Cheshire cat-like smile. I rolled my shoulders, feeling satisfied when I heard them pop loudly.

"I have arms! I have hands!" I said happily.

"I have opposable thumbs!" Twilight announced.

I laughed as I collapsed in my chair. Exhaustion was starting to sink into my limbs and I felt like they were made of rubber, or jelly, whichever was weaker. I was too tired to really give it any thought. My brain was about done for the day. Any more thought or any more use might just cause it to fry like bacon in a frying pan. Not a pretty sight since I tended to like the use of my brain.

"You would say that." I told her before asking after a pause, "Where are we going next?"She sat down and smiled bringing up the monopoly game we had been playing before. After all, someone had to win. There were multiple "shushes" directed our way due to my question and my eye twitched as I stood up and leaned against Donald's chair looking at the map that they were staring at intently seeing Twilight Town back on the map. I blinked in slight surprise _'Are we really that far already? We're almost halfway through.'_ I sat down with a sigh.

"We're going to Twilight Town!" Sora declared.

"I hope we're going to be taking pit stops on the way cause that's a long way to travel." Twilight said

I blinked. I sighed and placed a hand over my eyes. Things were growing so much more complicated. We were that much closer to Demyx's death and I still had no plan. I knew we had to do something. The Sitar Master had grown on me. He had grown on Twilight more but I wasn't going to start pointing fingers. But really, if anything happened to him I'd hate myself forever. He was a good guy, when you gave him a chance.

"Do I even want to know how long this trip is going to be?" I nearly groaned.

I peered through my fingers as Twilight scratched her cheek, sheepishly. She knew I wasn't going to like the answer. I was bracing myself for the worst, closing my eyes, as if to ward off my impending doom. Twilight was deciding whether or not to be merciful in the judgment. She could give it to me straight or she could beat around the bush.

"I'd give a rough estimate of 34-39 hours."

"You're shiting me?" I demanded.

I had bolted straight up in my seat, my jaw dropping. She glanced back at the map for a moment before sighing and shaking her head. I stood up and leaned against the back of Donald's chair again as they plotted out the route, everyone agreed that we should stop at Port Royal but past that everyone had different opinions. I glanced at Twilight, who wanted to stay at Disney Castle.

"I agree with Twilight on this one. We should stop at Disney Castle for rest and then stop at Hollow Bastion for a little while." I said.

Donald turned and placed his hands on hips glaring up at me. He wasn't all that intimidating. I stared down at him and tried not to laugh as he tried to make himself seem a little more threatening than he normally was. Many people would think that when something cute tries to be mean it's even cuter. I suppose Daisy would think that way. Me? Nah, I just find it funny.

"Why should we do that?" Donald asked.

"Disney Castle is so that you don't get in trouble with Daisy and we can make repairs to the ship. I don't know about Hollow Bastion." Twilight reasoned.

I smiled slightly and tapped the side of my nose. I had to think of something to stall for time. I mean, someone's life was on the line with this and I still had no idea how to broach it. If Sora had just met Demyx as a good guy then everything would be okay. Sora would probably even like Demyx if he just gave the Nobody a chance.

"First off we need to get supplies in the town," I explained, "We're starting to run low. Second we can put some of Pooh's book back together if we stop there. You guys take care of that, I take care of, I can't believe I'm saying this, the shopping and then we can race to Twilight Town as fast as you want."

The boys looked at each other. Each had a look of consideration on their faces. I had worded it logically so they had no choice but to admit that the idea had merit. I just hoped they went for it because sometimes they hated being told what to do. If they ever found out I was doing this to stall for a bit of time for my situation with Demyx, well, needless to say things wouldn't be pleasant for me once they were done.

"Ya' know they both have points, we should do that." Goofy said.

Donald sighed and inputted the route into the computer as Sora leaned back in his seat to fully relax. He looked just about as tired as I was. And we were all about to drop dead on our feet. He closed his eyes, folding his arms behind the back of his head for a makeshift pillow. Naturally he looked like the picture of nonchalance, though I'd never tell him that.

"I think I'm gonna let the computer fly us this time." Sora said.

"We can always play a game in the 13 hours between here and Port Royal." I suggested.

I chuckled and sat back in my seat turning towards the table. He gave a wide grin, immediately springing from his seat with energy that I simply didn't know he head and ran over to the table setting up a chair and sitting down as the others joined us. So much for Twilight and I finishing our game of Monopoly.

"What're we playing?" Sora asked.

* * *

I sighed as I looked down at the pirate outfit that had returned. Again noting that only Twilight's and my outfits were the only ones that changed and Twilight pointed at the boys. The clothes changing were bothering her more than they really bothered me. I just shrugged it off and decided just to go with it. There was, after all, nothing we could really do about it.

"Seriously, why are our cloths the only ones to change in this world?" Twilight demanded.

The boys just shrugged helplessly and we walked into a nearby inn getting two rooms. The guys headed into one and Twilight and I got the other. I doubted that we were going to see the boys for the rest of our stay there, unless they got into trouble that is. They would probably eat, talk/strategize and then go to bed. It was still pretty early here in Port Royal and I glanced at Twilight.

"Shouldn't it be really late?" Twilight asked.

"I've given up on trying to understand the time around here. I just go with it nowadays." I said.

I shrugged. Things had stopped making sense a long time ago, about the time when we were sucked into the game in the first place and had first started out on this little escapade of ours. Twilight blinked and chuckled as she agreed with me. Our lives had been pretty crazy as of late but there wasn't a thing we would change about it. Besides, history and fanfiction were interchangeable. So if in our timeline we went missing fanfiction could always fill in the missing holes.

"You wanna look around town?" she asked.

I smirked as I turned to her and nodded. She let out a 'woot' and ran over to the boys telling them that we were going to look around town. After all, we really didn't get to have a good look when we were here last and we didn't know when we'd get our next chance. When she came back in she grabbed my arm and dragged me out the door.

* * *

I sighed as the candles were being lit around town, Twilight still looking around in one of the shops. I was sitting on a barrel watching the crowd walk by my headed propped on my fist. _'I will never know where that girl gets all that energy.'_I sighed through my nose before looking at the shop as the door opened a bell tinkling as Twilight walked out. I blinked at the bag in her hand commenting

"I thought you were just going to look?" I said.

"I was." She replied.

The other girl smiled. I raised an eyebrow and looked pointedly at the bag in her hand. I felt myself smile a little as I eyed the bag in her hands. She never could simply look whenever we went to stores or anything. There was always that one little something that would catch her eyes. It was a good thing she was good with her money or she would constantly be broke.

"That doesn't look like looking." I said.

She chuckled and scratched the back of her head slightly as I jumped off of the barrel. I straightened up brushing the dust off my clothes, even though there wasn't any dirt on them to begin with. It was just a habit I had yet to break. Twilight didn't comment. I caught her doing the same thing sometimes but we thought nothing of it until someone called us out on it.

"You want to head up to the fort or go back to the inn?" I asked.

She stretched slightly. Then she looked over her shoulder, as if she expected someone to be there. My heart went out to her. I knew who she wanted to see. She wanted Demyx, perhaps to convince him not to go to Hollow Bastion, not to go to his death. She was worried about him and to be truthful I think we both were.

"I'm gonna head back to the inn. What about you?" she asked.

"I'm going to the fort." I said.

"Be careful 'kay. No getting into trouble." She cautioned.

She nodded before walking off. I chuckled slightly, shaking my head before walking towards the fort, giving a slight wave to the girl behind me.

* * *

I was standing on the ledge of the fort leaning against the memorial or warning bell…thing staring out at the sea when I heard footsteps behind me. I glanced back and raised an eyebrow as I saw someone I hadn't expected, at least not in the game. A hand on his sword, Norrington stared at me sternly.

"Women are not allowed on the ramparts without an escort." He hissed.

I stared at him before sighing and turning around, crossing my arms. He obviously didn't like the fact that I was basically ignoring him and grabbed my shoulder roughly. I glared at him darkly and for a moment he looked a little uncertain. I could swear my life on it that women here didn't glare at him often enough to deflate that ego of his. So I gave him a smile that very well could have passed for a sneer. Bet the girls around here didn't sneer at him either.

"I shall escort you off of the grounds and into a cell pirate." He growled.

I turned around and raised an eyebrow. Things were already spiraling out of my control and I didn't like that one bit. Plus, I was good about keeping my word. I promised Twilight I would stay out of trouble, minding the fact that trouble didn't come and find me. I swear I have to have a target or something on my back that says, _'Please come and make my life difficult!'_ I mean why else would these things happen to me?

"Now, how am I a pirate? I would like you to explain that." I taunted.

"You stink of pirate." He growled slightly.

I blinked. There was no way I could smell of pirates. I haven't even been around one since we landed her this time. I was almost tempted to sniff myself to check but then again I had no idea what pirates smelled like and if Twilight found out she might just start calling me a pirate-sniffer if I did. That nickname would be hard to live down plus it would raise a lot of awkward and unnecessary questions from random strangers.

"I had heard you far more courteous, I guess people were wrong." I snipped.

His eyes narrowed slightly. I watched with slight triumph as he gritted teeth, obviously as an act to keep himself from losing his patience with me. I didn't particularly care if he did dislike me. I could take him on by myself if I had to. It might just show him his place in the world. I wasn't exactly going to back down from this challenge whether he realized this or not.

"I am courteous to law abiding people, you are not." He said.

I blinked. I cocked my head to the side and raised an eyebrow. Now he was just jumping to conclusions. Just because my attire made me look different from other 'law abiding citizens' it didn't make me a pirate. For crying out loud, I was a good guy! I saved this world and others like it alongside Sora and the others. How is that not being a good guy?

"Can you prove it?" He blinked slowly and his grip on my arm started to relax as I continued, "I am not a pirate. I have not plundered or pillaged or whatever it is that pirates do. Now if you don't mind I would like you to leave me alone."

His grip returned with a vengeance. I wrinkled my nose in distaste, tempted to tell him to either take his hand off of me or he would lose it. But then again that would go into the fact that trouble seemed to find me. Chopping off a man's hand, even if trying to defend myself would probably result in trouble for me, plus, if he's in the next game or something he would kind of need that hand.

"A woman, still, should not be here without an escort." He said.

"I can take care of myself." I said.

I smirked at him darkly, letting the words sink in for him, since I had left a little hint that there was a threat within my words, nothing terrifying mind you but enough to let him know that I wasn't going to stand for someone trying to think and act for me. He started to pull but I refused to budge. I dug my boots into the ground to make as much of a resistance for him as possible. I wasn't going to make this easy for him.

"You do not seem to have a concept of what can happen to a woman on the streets alone." he said.

"And you don't seem to know who you're dealing with. She's far more capable of taking care of herself than most men." a familiar cocky voice said.

My eye twitched slightly. I frowned. Norrington seemed to go pale for a moment. The two of us looked over our shoulder to see someone in a black cloak, leaning against a wall behind us. I would have smiled brighter, save for the fact his hood was up so the smile wasn't as meaningful as the normal ones I gave him were, perhaps he was just trying to act the part of a bad guy since everyone in all worlds knew that the Men in Black were bad dudes. I chuckled softly.

"Most men?" I asked, "I don't know if I'm going to take that as a compliment or not."

He chuckled for a moment as Norrington walked off in a huff. Axel walked over to me, his hood up and my eyes narrowed slightly as I watched him, my smile turning into a frown. He turned his head to look at me. It was really irritating me that I couldn't see his face. I was so much more comfortable when I could see him, otherwise, how was I to tell it was really him and not someone pretending to be him?

"What?"

"What's with the hood?" I asked.

He shrugged. I raised an eyebrow at him. I couldn't believe that he didn't trust me and that he was trying to hide something from me. I reached towards him and tried to take it off myself but he took a step back, warding me off with a single hand. I felt my mouth open slightly and I tried to keep a look of hurt from crossing my face.

"Nothing." he said.

"Axel…"

My eye twitched again and my voice took a dangerous tone, a cautionary tone that was warning him not to mess with me. He knew that when I used this tone I meant business, or else there was trouble for all involved. And since he was the only one here, he would receive the full force of my anger. Especially since there was no one else around for miles and the last person who could have been my vent was gone, plus said vent had already made me mad.

"Who was the guy?" he asked.

He motioned to Norrington's retreating direction with a roll of his shoulders. I blinked before poking him in the chest slightly. I couldn't see his face but I knew he was looking at me but there was slight pain in the way he moved, as if that action hurt him but I didn't dare poke him again, just in case there was a cracked or broken rib. The last thing I wanted to do was aggravate it to the point where it wouldn't heal properly.

"_Don't_ try to change the subject. What happened to you? You did something stupid didn't you?" I demanded.

I heard him stutter for a minute and while he was caught off guard reached up quickly and grabbed the hood. His hands snatched onto my wrists and tried to pull them away but I can be as stubborn as a mule sometimes, and unfortunately for Axel, this was one of those times. He managed to pull my left hand off of his hood but I simply transferred that hand placing it on my elbow and yanking down pulling the hood off to the side.

"It's nothing! Ghost! Stop!" he protested

He had grabbed my left wrist again with his hand to keep me from touching his skin. It was too late though I had gotten the hood off and my eyes widened as I saw the bruises and cuts on his face. His right eye was swollen shut so that he could only see with his left eye but it didn't help that there was a nasty gash over his entire forehead. Head wounds took a while to heal, let alone stop bleeding, so naturally I was worried.

"Holy Shit! Someone had it out for you." I pointed out.

I gripped his arm and sat him on the stair before crouching in front of him. He bit his lip to keep from hissing out due to just how much moving and with as quickly as I was forcing him to do actually hurt him. It made my stomach drop. I licked my lips, wondering just what I could do for him. Nobodies weren't like people but that didn't mean it still didn't hurt.

"How bad is it actually?" I asked.

He shrugged wincing slightly as he did so. I could feel my expression softening just by looking at him and honestly if anyone else saw me this way, other than Twilight I might just have to threaten them into not talking about it under pain of death. Or to the pain, from Princess Bride, first would go the feet, then the hands, then the eyes, nose and tongue, but the ears remain so that person could hear every word spoken about them. Ah yes, that would probably be fun to torture someone with. Granted, I'm not sure I got the order right in what goes first in to the pain.

"As bad as one would expect when fighting the Luna Diviner." He grumbled.

I glanced up at him sharply as I dug into my pockets, looking for a Hi-potion but since my clothes had changed it took me a few times to find the right pockets. It was frustrating and a little annoying but I refused to let Axel leave my side until I knew that his wounds were taken care of. Seeing him hurt like this made my stomach roll and I almost got sick. He mistook my glance as confusion.

"Number VII. Saix. The Luna Diviner. Don't get on his bad side." Axel explained helpfully.

I blinked and pulled out the Hi-potion, handing it to the pyro who looked at it for a moment hesitated but took it anyways. I leaned back on my heels as he drank the potion _'Saix, figures. He wanted Kairi, that's why he went after Axel.'_Axel gasped as he finished the potion with a grimace. I wasn't a fan of them either.

"Man, those things taste horrible." He muttered bitterly.

I gave a small chuckle and he looked back at me, the bruises were gone and the cuts looked like they were healed and the pink skin that had been left behind would fade in a couple of days. I sighed and stood up turning so I was sitting next to him, one arm around my knee that was pulled to my chest. I put my hand on one of his, squeezing it gently, just to assure him I was there.

"Why was he after you?" I asked.

Axel winced and I looked over at him raising an eyebrow at the red head. He averted his eyes, unable to meet my gaze. He looked anxious and a little nervous, too much so to actually show me these feelings. I squeezed his hand again, to make sure that he remembered that he wasn't as alone as he thought he was anymore. I wasn't going to let him go through this alone.

"I'm considered a traitor to the Organization." he answered smoothly.

He threw me a lopsided grin, trying to make me believe what he said and I stared at him with a blank expression. I put my free hand on my hip and gave him a stern look. The smile faltered a little. He had failed in his little endeavor. I knew the plot line so I knew what had happened, granted, what he gave me was a half truth but he had long since been considered a traitor to the Organization for a while.

"I think that was one of the worst lies anyone has ever told me." I said.

He blinked as he watched me before giving a sheepish grin. He rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. He thought he was being sly with me but it never worked. I may not have been a living lie detector but I could usually tell when something was off, it never felt right.

I was that transparent was I?" he asked.

I shrugged. There really was no explanation for it. Plus, I heard that defining something gave it a limit since it had to stick to the definitions that had been placed on it. I never really was one to go by the book since I was known as a wild card. No one could read me by what I said or did which was probably why I was so good at poker. I was unorthodox.

"Not really, I just know how to read you a little. Now why don't we try the truth?" I suggested.

"I kidnapped Kairi." Axel said.

He winced again before sighing. I blinked at the straightforward answer before giving him a crooked grin. I was glad he didn't need that much prompting to come clean or else we would be there the whole night, trying to get him to spill the beans. Plus, it's not like Kairi was going to suffer that much. Naminé rescues her eventually and then Riku looks after her.

"See was it all that hard?" I asked.

I pat his shoulder and he stared at me. His mouth dropped open and for a moment he just sat there, gaping like a fish. I would have commented on how cute he looked but he might just deck me if I mentioned it so I kept it to myself. He shook his head, slowly coming to his senses about what was unfolding before him.

"You aren't surprised?" he asked, "Angry? Shocked?"

"Do you want to me to be angry, surprised, or shocked? I might be if you don't have a good reason for doing so."

I blinked and sighed propping my head on a hand. He looked back at me as I watched him quietly, almost considering my temper and the way I reacted to certain things that made me mad, like finding out that Demyx got hurt because he was unable to follow orders under Xemnas or because they would temporarily get turned into dusks for misconduct or just the main part of Organization XIII in general.

"She needed to get out of the way. The Organization would use her to get to Ro…Sora. Not only that but she's also a memory manipulator, I thought that maybe she could help Roxas."

I blinked, as he said that last part really quietly, and sighed staring at the ground as he watched me apprehensively. I ran a hand through my hair as I calculated possibilities of that actually being the truth before giving him the benefit of the doubt and reached over, Axel flinching slightly before I wrapped my arm around his shoulders in a friendly squeeze.

He blinked rapidly as his face turned slightly red and I let him go. Before he could react I was standing up and walking back over to the memorial bell thing and leaning against it. I heard him come up behind me and glanced back slightly with a small smile before looking back at the sea. I sighed turning around and clasping my hands behind me.

"I better head back to the inn before the others get worried. If you're sneaky you can come with but I don't want you getting into any more trouble than you already are. 'Kay?" I teased.

He smiled and nodded, offering one of his arms over to me, like a proper gentlemen escort. I grinned, amused, as I hooked my arm through his and we started walking. Oddly enough I was reminded of the Victorian Age where men were proper and well mannered and the women were submissive and dainty. Neither of us fit the roles except for in that one moment and even more stranger was the fact I was okay with it for a little.

* * *

My eye twitched slightly as I heard the hushed voices in Twilight's and my room. I opened the door and saw Demyx sitting on my bed talking to Twilight who was laughing. He glanced over and fell off my bed in shock; I chuckled and shook my head at the water mage before walking over to the window and opening it. As soon as the window was open, the signal that it was clear, Axel portaled into the room. Demyx sat over on Twilight's bed and Axel sat next to me.

"Where are you going to end up next?"Axel asked.

"We're gonna stop at Disney Castle, Hollow Bastion, and then Twilight Town." I answered.

I yawned, bringing a hand up over my mouth since I didn't want him to stare at my open jaws. Demyx tried to stifle his yawn but he too had fallen victim to the age old curse. If one person yawns another person yawns. There's just no stopping it. It was like a nasty flu that no amount of medicine or healthy living could fight off. At least yawning didn't kill you.

"I think it's time to go to sleep, we've been up for a while, even for the two of us this has been a stretch." Twilight said.

I smiled slightly as Demyx kissed Twilight's hand before leaving, vanishing into the darkness, the girl beet red. Axel stood up and wandered into the hall as I followed. I was already rolling my eyes at Twilight's completely and utterly delighted grin, closing the door behind me. I looked up at the red head at my side, wondering why he hadn't left as well.

"You never did answer my question." Axel commented.

I blinked for a moment before giving a lopsided grin, once I realized what he was talking about. I crossed my arms across my chest and stared up at him, trying to be as coy as possible though we both knew better. I couldn't be innocent if I tried, but I suppose that's just the way things are. Twilight on the other hand could pass, just not me. I wonder if it was because of the way we acted. It had to be some key factor.

"What question would that be?" I asked.

His mouth twitched into a smile at the reference of when we had first met on this world as he leaned against the wall. It was hard fighting back the smile, let me tell you, since we were both naturally teasing each other and just playing around before he had to go. And trust me, knowing that he was leaving hurt, since I knew that he didn't really have anywhere else to go now that he was truly kicked out of Organization XIII.

"Who the guy was?" Axel asked.

I snapped my fingers, acting as if I hoped he had forgotten. But the smile that twitched across my lips didn't help in my play acting. I knew that I would never be able to keep a secret from him, just as he was never able to keep a secret away from me. He was close to me and that's what scared me the most. Losing him would probably kill me, just like if Twilight lost Demyx it would kill her. So I was going to make sure neither of us lost anyone. But I just didn't know how yet.

"Drat. You did actually ask that question." I teased.

He chuckled. I couldn't help but chuckle as well. Had I been Twilight I might have giggled but I wasn't. Giggles were far too girly and dainty. It reminded me too much of the princesses from the other games I played, you know, Zelda, Princess Peach, or Princess Daisy. Sorry, Link, your princess is in another castle after all.

"That was Commodore Norrington. He is currently extremely frustrated over the fact that he can't capture Jack."

"The one who was hitting on you." Axel said through gritted teeth.

I smiled. Axel's eye twitched slightly and I tilted my head. If Jack were there right then and there I would bet munny on it that he would be a human torch at that moment. Plus, Jack might just give Axel someone to vent on since Saix had mopped the floor with him, granted I wasn't going to let Saix get away with that. Next time I saw him I was going to make sure to kick him between the legs, for good measure at least.

"Jack hits on everyone there's no reason to be jealous." I said.

"I am not jealous!" Axel cried indigently.

Axel turned red from sheer embarrassment at being caught being concerned for someone other than himself. I looked away, a hand stifling my laughter before glancing back up at him with a smirk. I bit my lip when I saw that he was very much still red faced as he took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down.

"For someone who's not jealous you sure are defensive about it." I taunted.

He blinked, his redness flaring up for another moment, and sighed, scratching the back of his head before summoning a portal behind him reluctantly. He didn't want to leave and I didn't want him to leave but if he were caught here by either and Organization member or Sora then things would get messy.

"I better go. I'll try to stop by in Disney Castle, no guarantees though." Axel said.

"I doubt you'll be able to get in, what with the Cornerstone being there and all." I said.

I shrugged. He smirked crossing his arms and glared at me playfully. I offered a small weary smile. I was exhausted and sleep sounded just fine with me. Especially since all I had promised to me tomorrow was a headache from Twilight and Sora and all of their constant bickering. I almost groaned at the prospect. My future for the next day was bleak. There was no escaping their fights.

"Do you doubt me and my ability to be sneaky? I'm hurt." Axel teased.

I chuckled before shooing him into the portal, humor lingering in my eyes as he looked at me over his shoulders, not seeming to want to leave just because I was shooing him out the door. I felt almost like a teen with a boy in their room that they didn't want their parents to see because they would jump to the wrong conclusions. I almost chuckled at the thought.

"You'd best be going. You're not as sneaky as you think." I said.

He smirked and turned around to face me. I stopped pushing him. He placed a hand on my cheek and leaned extremely close. I swear I could have felt my heart stop right then. I had never realized just how green his eyes were until they were that close to mine. I didn't dare to even breathe. It was as if time itself stopped.

"At least not around you."

He vanished into the darkness and I gawped at the place that he had been seconds before, my face bright red. _'What the__**hell**__was that?'_ I thought frantically. I ran a hand over my face before heading back into the room. Twilight was lying on her bed trying, and failing, to seem as if she was asleep, despite the gigantic grin on her face.

I sighed and lay down, staring at the ceiling in confusion. I felt completely and utterly drained of all energy but eventually I felt myself drifting into sleep.

* * *

I blinked and sat up, groaning as I straightened up, muscles stiff. Twilight hearing my movement woke up quietly, for once, and grinned at me. I glanced over at her and glared darkly.

"You say one thing about last night and… I'll think of something later, just know that you won't enjoy it." I threatened.

She blinked and gulped but her smile remained as she got up. We walked out of the room and headed down to the restaurant that the inn had and ordered breakfast. I leaned against the counter as we waited for our food. There was hardly anyone down in the inn's downstairs yet and of course, the boys weren't there yet.

"I'm surprised you're up this early." I commented.

"Don't expect it ever again." Twilight retorted.

She yawned. The waitress came back to our table bringing our food with her. I smirked and picked up my fork as our food was placed in front of us. It was good enough, better because it wasn't something that I had been forced to cook but still not as good as home cooking, I was really starting to miss my dad's BBQ.

"Oh, trust me I won't."

* * *

I stared up at the ceiling of the inn, my eye twitching, arms crossed, and rocking my chair back and forth as we waited for the boys to finish up. I stared at the ceiling counting the cracks in the tile since I was bored and there was really nothing else I could do but wait for Sora, Donald and Goofy to come down and leave already.

"It's like they're a trio of girls." I muttered loudly.

Twilight laughed until I glanced behind me to see a glaring Sora and Donald. Their anger, naturally, was directed at me but it wasn't like I cared. I was forced to wait around for them so I believe I was entitled to some sort of pay back. Sora was tapping his foot on the floor. His arms were crossed. He looked slightly vexed because of my insinuation about the way he took forever to get ready.

"Who's a girl?" Sora asked indignantly.

"You are."

I smirked before ruffling his hair. He squawked in horror and jumped back so I didn't mess his hair up anymore. But with a good shake of his head his hair was right back in place and right as it belonged. I just didn't know how he did it. I looked down at Donald but got a dark glare in return. I shrugged it off. No skin off my nose.

"We ready to go?"

The duck nodded and we headed towards the gummi ship, laughing and joking the entire way there.

* * *

By the time we had landed at Disney Castle I had the headache of the century. Twilight and the boys had been arguing for the past _**five**_ hours! My eye twitched as I rubbed my temples. I was considering mass murder, only of the annoying parties, though.

"God _dammit_, hello your Majesty pardon my language, but someone get me a God damn Advil!" I said loudly.

I winced slightly as the boys and Twilight started arguing again and ignored the broom servant that had appeared at my side with the requested medicine and a small glass of water. I wanted nothing more than to down the pills with a large gulp of water but I had to get them sorted out first. I shook my head and gathered what was left of the already fraying nerves that I had left as I pointed at the boys.

"I warned you not to get her going about this but did you listen, _no_! We're going to argue about if it's a hill or a bloody tree!" I snapped.

I turned to the broom servant that had waited patiently at my side with the tray and grabbed the pill bottle, shaking a tablet out, popping it into my mouth and slugging down some water. I placed the cup back onto the tray, the servant leaving, and ran a hand through my hair. I was just surprised my hair hadn't turned white with all the stress they were causing me.

"Man, I need a vacation." I grumbled.

Minnie looked up at me confused. She put a dainty hand on my forearm and I looked down at her wearily. I was bone tired now and we had hardly done anything yet today. I smiled weakly showing just how tired as was. I inhaled deeply and exhaled heavily, trying to relax, if only just a little bit. I really needed it.

"What are they arguing about?" Minnie asked softly.

"They are arguing about something in Halloween Town, your Majesty. It's nothing to be concerned about." I answered.

I glanced down at her rubbing my temples. Honestly I was kind of surprised that she was even asking but then again Sora was the boy her husband said would practically save the universe from certain doom so she may want to find out what the boy was like. She nodded and walked forward towards the four arguers. I blinked as she clapped her hands drawing everyone's attention to herself.

Now, why don't we all stop arguing and have dinner?"

Goofy, Donald, Twilight, and Sora all bowed to the female mouse. That was it. She was my freaking hero. She had managed to do what I had been trying to do for the past five hours and while a part of me was a little bitter that she had managed what I couldn't another part of me was rejoicing in the now silent companions I had. I just had to figure out how she did it because I was two seconds away from pulling out duck tape.

"If you don't mind your Majesty I am going to spend some time with Daisy." Donald said.

"Of course, Donald. We shall see you in the morning."

The duck walked off and the rest of us followed Minnie into the dining room. One of the broom servants was leading me to the room that I had been in before after my incident with the Cornerstone, the Queen, having said that this was the farthest room away from it. I smiled and nodded towards the servant as it closed the door and left me alone in the room.

I kicked off my shoes and tossed my coat onto the bed before setting my sunglasses and bowie onto the bedside table. I flopped back and stared at the ceiling above before resting my arm on my eyes. _'How are we going to keep Demy alive? I don't have much time to figure it out but… I have too, for Twilight's sake at least.'_ I rolled over and closed my eyes drifting to sleep, in the middle of a plan that I knew wouldn't work.

* * *

I sat up from the bed and ran a hand through my hair slowly before getting up and getting ready for the day. By the time I was done it was already 7 in the morning. I sighed sadly for a moment, no stroke of brilliance having come upon me in the night. I walked out of the room and wandered, trying to find my way back to the dining room or the kitchen. I eventually did find the dining room, after about 15 minutes. I sat down and placed my head on the table waiting for the others, it didn't take long for them to show up their normal morning chatter already started.

I blinked slowly and lifted my head off of the table; Twilight blinked seeing the sad expression vanish from my face, to be replaced by a small smile. The others smiled and sat down around me as we waited for the food to arrive. Donald showed up and we looked over at him, Sora teasing him about Daisy Donald in turn teasing him about Kairi. In the end we had a blushing duck and boy with everyone else laughing at them. Twilight leaned over to me.

"You alright?" Twilight asked.

I blinked and turned to her before sighing and nodding. She made a face like she didn't believe me but let it go. We all smiled towards the Queen as we said our goodbyes heading for Hollow Bastion, I was tuning out all of the conversation during the five hour trip.


	23. Finally

*peeks around corner* um...hi...everyone. Well a few updates before I let you get to what you're really looking forward to. One, please don't kill me for the late update. FF .net decided to be stupid and not let me send stuff to my beta for a while and it didn't tell me it was doing this. Two, this is the last beta-ed chapter by Kita. She's having some personal issues that are going on and it's better that we let her handle things on her own. So many thanks for her hard work thus far and I wish her luck on all her future endeavors.

Shout outs: Nevergonnafitin, Kawaiikitty513, burry and bunny, Alexandria Volturi, Flyteless Kitsune, kingdomdisney,BAYALE, Kora Bloom, supersam4ever08, kh2 fan13, Axel'sChakrams8, Emi and Alex, grapejuice101, The Three Kings, sweetyjg, Kai Hero, Moonlitforest, SkyWarrior2, InTheDarkestHowers, satelliteheart00, DarkRiddlesDestiny, renjiwolf, jemmagirl, Fionn Rose, Moonlitforest, K-chanLovesAnimeXD, kenegi, The Great Author-Sama Muhahaha, Vesperian Blue Cross, and Into-The-Dark-rutu14.

Disclaimer: Do you honestly think that SquareEnix would give me KH or anything related to it, even if it's on my birthday? ...Nah I didn't think so either.

* * *

**Chapter 23: Finally…**

After landing in Hollow Bastion, everyone split up, the boys headed to Merlin's to take care of Pooh's book, and I headed into the market to take care of the supplies. Twilight grabbed onto my arm, stopping me from going anywhere. I tried my best not to look her in the eyes. I didn't want her to see the fearful thoughts dancing through my head.

"Are you alright 'cause you've been down since last night?" Twilight asked.

I blinked and ran a hand through my hair before nodding. I'm surprised all the stress I was under hadn't changed my hair white. Or that I hadn't recently started to go bald with how many times I've run my hand through my hair and sighed the way I have. And while white hair looked kind of cool on teenage game characters I don't think it would have worked for me and balding wasn't pretty on everyone. Very few people could pull it off effectively.

"I've just got a lot on my mind with the battle coming up so soon." I responded.

Twilight blinked in surprise and let go of my arm. A look of confusion crossed her face. I stared at her expectantly. She couldn't have forgotten. It involved Demyx. It involved Axel. It involved whether two guys that were like our best friends lived or died. But also a lot had happened since we had started and our minds were preoccupied with a lot of thoughts about the future and making sure things go a certain way.

"Battle?" Twilight asked.

I raised an eyebrow, expectantly. She still didn't figure it out. I was actually kind of glad that it wasn't haunting her footsteps the way it was mine. My mind was plagued by the what ifs and the could have beens. It was enough to make me want to shake my head until it rattled, if only to stop the thoughts from rebounding everywhere.

"Demy." I replied simply.

She turned grim and nodded. I placed a hand on her shoulder. I hated bringing her down that way but honestly, she had to remember. She had to help me figure out a way to save Demyx. I knew I couldn't do it on my own. Sora would have been of no use to me. Nobodies are evil. Nobodies are darkness. Nobodies are Nobodies to him.

"We'll make this work, we'll make sure that we don't lose him." I said.

She glanced up at me and nodded before forcing a smile. She was putting on a tough act so I wouldn't worry about her. And it tore me up inside to watch her put on a brave front, just for me. It had to be tearing her apart inside too. Demyx was pretty close to her, at least, she was closer to him than I was. She spent more time with him than I did.

"I'm going to go see Yuffie." Twilight said.

"Try not to drive Leon insane." I cautioned.

I smirked. She laughed and nodded before running off. My smile vanishing as soon as she was out of sight. _'You say that but you have no idea how.'_ I thought bitterly, reprimanding myself for giving her hope when I had none for myself. I shoved my hands into my pockets as I headed into the marketplace to get the supplies that we needed.

It didn't take long for me to get everything that we needed and I sighed as I adjusted the bags in and on my arms. I was watching where I was putting my feet and didn't notice I was standing in front of a person until the last moment as black boots came into my view. I blinked and looked up at Cloud with a smile saying

"Hello. We run into each other a lot don't we?" I asked nonchalantly.

His eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at me. I offered a half smile and a raised eyebrow, waiting for him to say something. It was best to let him make the first move because I would probably just get on his bad side if I pushed things a little too far. I hated how I had to tip toe around certain people just to make sure I didn't tick them off.

"You're the girl that was following me before." he accused.

"Not following, conveniently heading in the same direction."

I had shrugged my shoulders, showing I meant him no harm, and I did it with a crooked grin, trying to seem slightly impish. His face didn't change but my grin grew slightly as I adjusted the bags. He sighed and I blinked in surprise as he grabbed onto some of the bags relieving me of their weight. I smiled.

"Follow me." I said.

I headed back to the ship as Cloud followed and had a small conversation about things in general, though it was fairly one sided. He blinked as he spotted the gummi ship and I headed on board placing the bags in my hands inside before reaching over to him and taking the ones that he had. Once I had stored all of the bags in the ship I jumped out and looked up at the blonde questioningly.

"Keep an eye out for Sephiroth. Tell me if you see him on your travels." he said.

I nodded as he walked off…without giving a description of the man, not that it mattered, and shook my head at his retreating back before heading back onto the ship to put the food into storage. _'He's so different than when he was in Final Fantasy VII. He has definitely taken on the Advent Children persona. When are the other's going to get back?'_ I mused. I brushed off my hands after I set the last item in the fridge.

Standing up I headed out of the ship and glanced around before sighing and heading over to Bailey to think. Once I got there I sat on the ledge that overlooked the Gorge and stared out at the soon to be battlefield. It was some time before I glanced behind me as I heard a warping sound and saw the red head stepping out of the portal before looking back at the gorge. He walked up behind me and I turned smiling up at him.

"You didn't come to Disney Castle." I said.

"The Cornerstone blocks all darkness. How can you stand it there?" Axel asked.

He grimaced at the very thought of being there. I blinked and leaned my head against the wall. I didn't enjoy my stay there either but at least I had gone, not there had really been all that much of a choice. I understood his aversion to the light. I had it myself but I fought that disgust tooth and nail. I really had to, if I wanted to stay with Twilight. The thought of losing one of my best friends was sickening.

"By going into the hall as little as possible and staying in the farthest room there is from the thing." I explained.

Axel's eyes narrowed as I looked up at him. I tilted my head to the side, waiting for him to say something, because honestly, I wasn't a mind reader. I wasn't going to pretend to be one either, like one of those phony psychics that declared to know your future by reading your palm or a crystal ball or something like that. That would be cool and all but not possible and incredibly creepy at times.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Am I really that transparent?" I asked.

I had blinked before grimacing. He shook his head slightly. I really hoped I hadn't or else everyone would know just how tense I really was. If Sora caught on, or if Axel caught on, well, things wouldn't be good. I had worked too hard to get here to have things ruined for me, plus, lives depended on me at the moment.

"No, I've just been watching you for a while." Axel explained.

My eyebrows rose at that. I hadn't even noticed him following me. I should have been able to notice. What if it were Saix next time? Or even worse, what if it were Xemnas? I would have been royally screwed if I were caught off guard by them. At least Axel was on my side. He wouldn't have hurt me if he was following but still...

"Well if that wasn't stalkerish." I said.

He grimaced. I regretted my comment. The last thing I wanted to do was to make him upset. At some point he had reached out a hand and threaded his fingers through my hair. It was oddly comforting and I found myself leaning against the touch. My emotions were so fragile. A thin line separated all of them: hate, anger, sadness, joy. Especially when around Axel, they would show through and vanish at the drop of a hat. It certainly wasn't a normal experience for me, I had to get these things reigned in or they would be…problematic.

"I didn't mean it like that. I meant that I could tell that you were tense." Axel argued.

I sighed as he placed his hands on my shoulders, making me scoot forward so that he could sit behind me, and messaged them, working out the tension that had been building up. I was leaning against his chest and felt a surge of calm flow through me. No one had rubbed my shoulders in…hell I don't even remember the last time. It felt great, getting all that tension out of them. He worked on a knot while my mind started to float.

"I've got a lot on my mind. That's all." I said.

His hands squeezed comfortingly on my shoulders as he settled himself behind me. I felt like a five year old. I lowered my head and took a deep breath in. I let it out and deflated. I was just so tired now-a-days. I was so weary and so worn. I just wanted some time to kick back and relax but I was constantly running around and saving the worlds.

"Like what?" he inquired.

I sighed and shook my head. Honestly I shouldn't even have mentioned it. By telling him no, he would only want to learn more about it. That's just common psychology. I made to put a hand over my mouth but Axel captured it in his, keeping it from its destination. I really had to shut up. My ears couldn't take this much longer.

"Don't want to talk about it." I muttered.

Axel's hands paused on my shoulders. I fought the urge to groan. He had been doing so well in working out that knot right above my shoulder blade and it was nowhere near gone just yet. I looked back at him over my shoulder to plead for him to continue but I froze when I saw the expression on his face.

"If you tell me, maybe I can help." he insisted.

I blinked, for a brief moment actually considering his offer. He said it in such a way that was meant to be soothing. Right now it just made me want to rip something apart. But it wasn't him that angered me. It was the fact that I couldn't tell him anything when I really wanted to, it was the fact that I was giving into weakness. I was supposed to be the one that stayed standing no matter what was thrown at me. I placed a hand on one of his before shaking my head once more. I couldn't tell him, even if I wanted to.

"This is something that I've got to deal with."

He started messaging my shoulders again and I leaned back into his hands slightly a contented sigh coming out of me. I looked up at him once more. His eyes showed concern, worry and hurt. I felt bad for keeping him out of this but it truly was for his own good. I pulled away from him and turned around so that I could look at him straight on.

"It'll be alright." I assured him.

I placed a hand on his arm and stared up at him. I tried to look as convincing as humanly possible. Honestly, I did my best to convince him otherwise. But it didn't seem to ease him at all. He looked like he wanted to take me and shake me until I told him the real truth, without my dicey aversions to his questions and shifty answers.

"Trust me." I continued.

He nodded reluctantly before pulling me into a hug, my eyes widening in surprise as leaned close so that his mouth brushed against my ear. My face started to heat up but I managed to stave off a blush. I just looked extremely flushed. And that was a look I tried to avoid because it made me look like some damsel. I never did like the feeling of being flustered and did try to avoid it at all costs.

"Just be careful." Axel cautioned.

I smiled and patted his back as I pulled away. He was forced to reluctantly release his hold on me slightly. I didn't understand why he was so touchy-feely today, not that I didn't mind it in the slightest but something was up. It worried me even more. And I think I knew what it was. It had to do something with Organization XIII.

"I'll be alright, Axel. Don't worry about me." I insisted.

He sighed and stood up, getting off of the ledge. I wanted to pull him back down and make him sit with me until sunrise but then I wouldn't get any sleep. We could get caught by Sora and the others. He could get caught by Organization XIII. I could be spotted as a weakness for him, maybe. Or we could get attacked by Heartless or Nobodies. Lovely, right?

"I shouldn't stay long, in any one place anymore. I've been planet hopping, laying false trails and such but The Organization is keeping a watchful eye out for me and I don't want them to use you." Axel explained.

I smiled slightly and nodded in understanding as he stepped into a portal, taking one last look back at me before vanishing completely. I sighed and headed over to Merlin's place to see if the boy's were done and what sort of trouble Twilight had gotten into. I blinked as I saw Leon leaning against the house and walked over to him.

"What's up?" I asked.

He looked over at me before looking at the open door. I raised an eyebrow and peered in to see that Twilight and Yuffie were trying to stay occupied to the dismay of Cid, Donald, and Goofy. I backed away quietly and sat down next to the man. There was no way I was going to go into that war field. I would like to stay sane…well as sane as I could be with friends like these.

"I think I'm gonna stay out here." I told him.

Leon glanced down at me with a slight smirk before staring at the wall again. I blinked when I caught him staring at me almost intently. It was uncomfortable. It was like he was trying to figure out how my brain worked. I'm pretty sure he didn't have X-Ray vision to do a mental brain scan but you never know. The game creators might have left something out.

"How do you put up with them all the time?" he asked.

"Lots of patience, tolerance, and experience at ignoring people."

I smiled at him unrepentantly. He chuckled at my little joke and my smile grew slightly before we both looked at the door to see the others coming out. I stood up as Donald came over. I dusted myself off, though there was no dust to really get off of me. It was just a habit that I had.

"We ready?" I asked.

Donald nodded hurriedly as Sora and Goofy dragged Twilight away from Yuffie and out of the house. I chuckled and pushed myself away from the wall and waved a quick goodbye to Leon as I chased after the others, who were still dragging the protesting Twilight. Twilight really didn't want to go after all but honestly, I didn't blame her. We had to go to Twilight Town next. And that only meant one thing.

* * *

I stretched and smiled as I looked around Twilight Town. It hadn't changed since we had last been here. And while that was comforting in one aspect it was annoying in another because it meant that things were going to happen, just how they happened in the games, well as much as they could with the two of us here. Twilight was looking around excitedly as this had always been one of her favorite worlds.

"H-Help! The Sandlot! It's Seifer!" someone yelled in a high-pitched, fear laden voice.

I blinked as we watched the little black mage, Vivi, run past us. The poor kid looked absolutely terrified. I just wanted to pull him aside and comfort him but he ran past me. Just grabbing him as he was running would have scared him even more than he already was. Plus, it would be a little strange for a person you had never formally met before just grabbed you, right? Though if he really wanted to Vivi probably could have killed all of us if he got pushed far enough. He was one tough little guy.

"Somebody please help us!" Vivi shouted.

We turned back to Sora. He called the shots in the long run. We would do as he told us to. All he had to say was jump and we would respond with 'how high?' It must have been great knowing that he had that much power over us, but then again it was terrible because one foul order could ruin everything. Sora must have been very stressed.

"Sounds like we got trouble!" Sora said.

"Do we have to help them?" I groaned.

Sora gawped at me for a second before nodding firmly and running in the vague direction of the Sandlot. I sighed and ran up to the boy. It wasn't too hard to keep in pace with him, even though I really didn't want to go. I mean, I had to go and rescue that sleaze bag and his little posse of friends. Fuu was okay in Final Fantasy. Rai just annoyed me.

"Do you even know where the Sandlot is?" I asked.

He slowed down and scratched the back of his head but he continued to jog in its general direction. If he continued going that way he would be too late to go and save Seifer. I grabbed him and pulled him back so that he didn't go running off and get lost here. Seifer may have been a jerk but I really couldn't leave him. Cursed conscious… It mocks me so.

"Uh…no." he admitted.

I sighed and moved ahead of him though I was reluctantly running. I wanted to hit myself, knock myself out, anything to keep from helping that jerk but it had to be done. We were heroes and heroes saved people, no matter who they were or just how annoying they were.

"C'mon, it's this way. I can't believe I'm letting you go help Seifer, of all people why Seifer." I mumbled to myself.

Nobodies were bouncing around the already fallen jerks but Seifer was still trying to get up to fight back and maybe even protect his friends. Who knew what went on in that man's head? I sure didn't know. And honestly, I didn't want to know. Sora ran ahead and got in front of the Twilight Town's Disciplinary leader and said

"We'll take it from here!" Sora assured them.

Seifer seemed like he was going to protest as I walked up, I looked down at him and sneered darkly. I couldn't really help it. Just seeing him made me want to hit him as hard as I could so I could no longer look at those judging eyes of his.

"Shut up or pass out already but stay out of this." I snipped.

The scorn in my voice could have wiped out the population of a large city. Twilight came up as I summoned my sword. I was going to vent all of my stress and frustration out on these Nobodies and they better get out of my way, damn it, because I was absolutely pissed. They would call me a Berserker for what I was going to do.

"Wow, you really don't like him." Twilight said.

I glanced over at the girl. I tried my best to keep the sneer off my face. I rolled my eyes and turned my back to her as I started grappling with a Nobody. I wasn't even focused on the creature but it wasn't too strong. I didn't have to worry about how strong it was. I could easily overpower it if I chose to do so.

"He's annoying is all," I countered.

She smirked as she unsheathed her sword. I twisted, my leg connecting into a Nobody that was about to jump on Seifer sending it into a wall. I sent a lightning blast after it making it disappear before moving on to another. As the battle progressed there was a slight lull, where I found myself next to Twilight who glanced over at me as she parried an attack from a dusk.

"You protected Seifer, I'm shocked!" she said.

I grimaced slightly. I didn't need to be reminded. But I had done my one good deed for the day. Seifer shouldn't expect anything else nice from me for the rest of forever. I looked at him, meeting his eyes for just a moment. There was a flicker of emotion before he huffed and looked away from me. I scoffed. He didn't deserve my help.

"I can't help it." I muttered.

She chuckled as she sliced through the dusk that had tried to sneak up behind me while we were conversing. I sliced it in half with ease. Luckily it had just been a Dusk but another Berserker was coming at us. I would eliminate the Berserker with delight. I hated Saix's creatures almost as much as I hate Saix himself.

"You're just a big softie under all that tough guy talk." Twilight told me.

I smirked slightly as I grabbed her arm, pulling her away from the descending Berserker, barely getting her out of the way in time. She stared at it for a moment before a scowl over took her smile that had been there just moments before. She looked about two Nobodies away from starting to throw a temper tantrum.

"I _hate_ these things!" she screamed in fury.

I glanced over at her as I dodge rolled out of the way of Berserker. After I stopped rolling I pulled my sword back up, just in time to defend myself from another. They were rather persistent today. But perhaps that was because Saix was around, watching and waiting in the shadows, like a spider, waiting for the kill.

"Well they are directly under Saix." I shrugged.

She grimaced and nodded as she sent a Thundera spell into one of the attacking Berserkers. I grabbed an ether from my back pocket before handing it to her. She downed the drink and then she used another spell against the Nobodies. I turned my back to her and checked on Sora and the others. They were holding their own just fine. They always did.

"That certainly explains a lot." She muttered.

It took awhile to beat all of the Berserkers and Dusks but it did eventually get done. I dusted my pants off though there was no dust on me. I looked around, trying to spot Saix before he got there. I just wanted to get this over with. He was far too annoying for me. I just wanted to bash his head in so we didn't have to fight him later.

"Impressive."

We all looked around as a voice that only Twilight and I recognized immediately. Saix was here. My eyes landed on the hooded figure that was giving a golf clap to us. I felt déjà vu. It was like when Roxas was in the virtual reality and Axel was the one clapping for him. However, Saix was a little less kind and a little more of a douche.

"By the way, have you seen a man named Axel?" Saix asked, "I expect he's here somewhere."

I blinked slightly, face blank, trying to keep all emotion off my face, although I really wanted to throttle that blue haired freak. I took joy in the face I pictured him making as I choked the life out of him. But then I was trying not to give a dark little chuckle that would give everyone some sort of idea of what I was thinking.

"Like I care." Sora said

"You see, Axel's no longer acting in our best interest."

Saix continued ignoring Sora's little outburst but then again a lot of people never took Sora seriously, Riku being one of them. I crossed my arms as I watched the Luna Diviner, poker face revealing nothing. This was something that had to happen no matter how much I really didn't want it to. If only we could attack him and be done with him.

"Is he with the Organization, too?" Goofy asked.

"Yes." Saix responded bluntly

I rolled my eyes. I could only content myself at the moment with the mental images of me choking the life out of him. I couldn't do anything to stop him from implanting in Sora's head that Axel was a really shady character when he only did what he was doing to help Roxas – his best friend. Surely Sora would understand that sort of mentality. It's what he was doing for Riku.

"You havin' a fight?" Donald asked

Sora was still in a defensive crouch. I didn't blame him. Saix could have turned on us at any second and probably would have won at this moment. It really makes me wonder why they didn't try to eliminate us earlier when we were still weak because now we at least have a fighting chance. It just made no sense. But I wasn't going to complain. I'd rather not die any time soon.

"Not a very organized Organization…" Sora taunted.

"Don't let your guard down. Axel will stop at nothing to turn you into a Heartless." he said.

Saix had pointed casually but warningly at the Keyblade Master. _'Really? He would? I don't think he's that kind of a person, Berserker. Though this is a pretty nice act you've got going, you even had me fooled for a little bit when I first played.'_I thought darkly as I glared at him as hatefully as I could muster. I blinked and glanced over at Sora. I really wondered what he truly thought about all of this.

"Gee, thanks for looking out for us, mister. But I'm sure we can take care of ourselves just fine." Sora said sarcastically.

"Glad to hear it. Axel aside, it would break our hearts to hear something happened to you." Saix said.

"Hearts? You don't have any hearts!" Donald said.

My eye twitched slightly and I had to stop myself from reprimanding the duck for what he said but I held my tongue. Saix reached up and pulled off his hood revealing long blue hair, an x scar on his face, golden eyes, and pointy ears. Those eyes were the creepiest feature about him, I always did wonder if they glowed in the dark.

"True, we don't have hearts. But we remember what it was like. That's what makes us special." Saix said.

"Whaddaya mean?" Goofy asked.

My eyes narrowed as I felt the tug of a portal as it appeared behind Saix. I was glad he was finally leaving but I still wanted to see that face of his turn black and blue with bruises. And I was so tempted about making some sort of joke about him being Xemnas' second man for a reason, ah fanfictions… But we weren't supposed to know Mansex's name yet.

"We know very well how to injure a heart. You two, should take careful heeding to my words." he said.

I blinked as he directed the last comment to me and Twilight, looking straight at us. My heart skipped a beat but to my delight I kept a straight face as before. I couldn't help but wonder if he knew about what Axel and Demyx did for us. If he did things would go badly, very, very badly. My heart rate sky rocketed.

"Sora, you just keep on fighting those Heartless." Saix ordered.

"Let's jump in after him!" Sora whispered.

I looked down at Sora. He had failed miserably at being quiet. Saix heard him. So much for being super sneaky, right? I mean, it's called a surprise attack for a reason.

"How come?" Donald asked.

"I'm not sure, but maybe he'll lead us to the Organization's world." Sora explained.

I rolled my eyes _'That's great and all but how do you plan getting past the rest of the Organization, not to mention Saix, who is__**standing right there**__!'_ Saix apparently agrees with my line of thinking, somewhat. And that made me slightly annoyed to have some sort of a similar brainwave pattern as the jerk.

"Don't be reckless. Do you want to end up like Riku?" Saix reprimanded.

"What?" Sora cried.

Saix bowed and walked backwards into the portal as if mocking us to follow him and oh, how I was tempted to do just that but who knew what was waiting for us on the opposite side of that portal. He could have led us straight into a jail cell and then warped out of there the moment he was there. We would be trapped inside. As he vanished into the darkness Sora reached out to stop him but it was too late.

"Hey, wait!" Sora had cried.

The portal vanished and I sighed relaxing as I couldn't sense him anymore. I looked over at Sora once more. He looked thoroughly confused and really upset. Mentioning Riku had really rattled him. And even I was shaking now that Saix was gone. My fists were clenched at my sides with white knuckled grips, only my gloves keeping me from bloody hands.

"What did he mean, end up like Riku?" Sora asked.

My expression softened slightly as I watched him sadly. I couldn't say anything. Twilight placed a hand in his arm. She flashed him a comforting smile. I noticed something was off. She too, was shaken about Demyx being mentioned. Neither of us gave anything away while Saix was there but we could now that he was gone, at least a little bit.

"We'll find him, don't worry." Twilight assured him.

He looked over at her, smiled and nodded. He seemed comforted slightly by the idea. He just needed to be encouraged a little more. He was a natural optimist but even the best of people needed a boost in attitude sometimes. We were just lucky he wasn't in full on angst mode where he hated everyone in all of the worlds. Ah, teenage hormones…

"Hey, how 'bout you get out of my town now? You've caused enough trouble." Seifer complained.

I had smirked but it vanished and my eyes narrowed. My scowl had returned as I looked at him darkly. I turned towards the teen, wanting nothing more than to bash his head in. I couldn't wait until I got to 'Struggle' with Seifer. I would show him who was better. I would show him who's the boss. He would regret the day he crossed me.

"How about some gratitude for the people that just saved you life?" I groused.

"Have it your way! C'mon, guys." Donald yelled.

I glanced back at Seifer over my shoulder. My eyes were still narrowed at him. Daggers were being glared into his flesh. Twilight put a hand on my shoulder to keep me back, to keep me from attacking him, despite the fact that if I did, she probably wouldn't be able to keep me back. I would obliterate the boy.

"Hold it." Seifer said.

"Make up your mind!" Donald roared.

I blinked slightly as he held up a trophy. I instantly recognized it. I could see the colorful crystals. I wanted to snatch the trophy away from him and stare at the crystal into the sunset but I'm sure every Kingdom Hearts fan girl has wanted to do the same thing at least once in her life. I also wanted to find the recipe for Sea Salt Ice Cream. Yum…

"This goes to the strongest guy in Twilight Town." Seifer said.

"Thanks, but… we don't really need it." Sora said.

Sora had pointed at himself confused before smiling. _'Considering you've saved the multi-verse I say you have surpassed the point where you can get trophies by facing civilians Sora.'_ I thought sardonically. We watched as the punk moved forward quickly and shoved the trophy into Goofy's hands. Seifer returned my glare for a second before walking off, his flunkies following him. My glare vanished as soon as the three were out of sight.

"Oh! Sora!"

"Um…"

I blinked, turning around as Sora looked up. I cut in waving with a slight smile. I grinned, instantly recognizing the new person. It had been a while since I'd seen him but seeing a familiar face was good for me. I was delighted to hear the voice of someone I didn't hate but I knew he was coming after all.

"Hey, Pence." I smiled.

He grinned and turned to me. It really had been too long since I last saw him. He opened his arms, offering me a hug. Normally, I would have turned him down. But after seeing Seifer, I think I really needed a hug so I let him give me one, very brief. In fact, I pat his back when I was ready to be let go. He pulled away.

"Hi, Ghost. Um… who's your friend?" Pence asked.

I looked over at Twilight before grinning. A lot had changed since I had been here last. But then again a lot has not changed since I had last been there. It was good and bad at the same time but still a welcomed change. I wanted to stroll around and find out what had changed and what stayed the same but we were on a schedule.

"That's right she wasn't here when we first met you guys. Pence this is Twilight, Twilight, Pence." I introduced.

Twilight grinned and waved to the boy who nodded and turned back to Sora. The news was for Sora about Kairi so Twilight and I weren't annoyed that we were taking a back burner to everything. Kairi was and always would be one of Sora's first friends. She would always be the forefront of all his thoughts and worries.

"Do you know a girl named Kairi?" Pence asked.

I blinked in surprise as Sora jerked forward excitedly. The game didn't do his overjoyed reaction justice. His entire face lit up like a child told they could have any toy in the toy store. It made my heart ache to realize that he would only be crushed in the end. I grimaced and looked down, praying no one saw my expression.

"K-Kairi? I sure do!" Sora stammered.

My eyes narrowed slightly. I wondered if I shouldn't stop this, or tried to have made things a little more comfortable when Sora found out. Or maybe I should have tried to defend Axel. Sora would be devastated to know that Kairi was gone once again, out of reach and in danger once more. My head was reeling.

"Then you better come to the station!" Pence said.

Sora nodded eagerly and Pence ran off the boys following quickly. Pence was just leading them on some wild goose chase, though he didn't know it himself. Twilight and I jogged behind them but further back so we could talk to one another. I looked over at her worriedly. She looked just as worried as I was. Demyx and Axel were going to get hurt in the near future.

"I'm surprised you let him say that stuff about Axel." Twilight said.

I blinked before glancing over at her. But then I nodded. It was hard, letting Saix berate Axel like that. But I knew the red head. I knew him better than most anyone, maybe aside from Roxas but Roxas knew him first. I was just someone who Axel met along the way, I suppose to help him cope with the loss of his best friend.

"Well, he apparently knows but the boys don't. I think we should keep them in the dark for a little longer, for everyone's sake." I explained.

"You're going to have to explain that one?" Twilight asked.

She had blinked and her face scrunched slightly in confusion as she jogged by my side. I smiled slightly. Some things would never change. That was good to know. Twilight would always be Twilight no matter what happened to them. I didn't want to lose anymore than I had to in the upcoming battles. And I knew something wouldn't be the same after all of them. I wondered how much I would change.

"Sora and the others don't need to know because if they did then they would think of us as traitors. They only know Axel and Demyx as Organization members, not as the people we know them as. Plus he learns about what Axel's done in a few minutes, it won't exactly put Axel on Sora's good side. So we need to figure out a way to keep them alive without Sora finding out. This way the game play will still turn out how it's supposed to." I explained once more.

She nodded in understanding as we ran up to the station, catching up to the boys quickly. We were about to enter into the actual station when we slowed to a stop. I saw Hayner and Olette further down the station. They looked disappointed. I could only imagine why. Sarcasm people, remember that I use it.

"He-ey!" Hayner yelled

We waited as both Hayner and Olette ran up to us. As soon as they came to a stop they were smiling when they saw us. They wouldn't be smiling for long. Things were going to have to start causing more pain and suffering for Sora, because of course, the poor kid couldn't catch a break, even if he wanted to.

"Hey, so how do you guys know Kairi?" Sora asked.

The two of them looked at each other before looking at the ground and explaining what happened, barely leaving out any details that weren't already in the game. All the smiles from before were gone the moment Kairi was mentioned. And I really felt bad for Sora. I did. If only I had decided to convince Axel otherwise… But then again, Saix might have gone after her personally. I shivered at the thought. She was better off for the moment.

"Kairi was really here?" Sora demanded in the middle of their story.

"Yeah. And… she said she was looking for you." Hayner said.

"Tell me where she is!" Sora cried.

Olette held a hand to her chin apprehensively. She really looked regretful about being the one to tell Sora what happened. But Hayner and Pence were as tight-lipped as Scrooge's coin purse. They did not want to be the bearers of bad news. They were probably afraid that Sora would lose his temper and hit them. Sora wasn't like that.

"Well…"

I stretched my hands above my head before shoving them into my pockets tuning the rest of the story out. I already knew what happened.

I blinked as I came back to reality. Sora was looking at the good luck charm that Kairi had given him on his previous endeavors. He placed it back in his pocket with a dejected look on his face.

"Ya think it mighta been Axel?" Goofy asked Donald to which Donald nodded.

"Sorry…" Hayner said.

Sora forced a smile. I didn't know how he managed to smile when he was really hurting that badly inside. God, that smile tore me up inside. I wanted to shake him, rattle him to the bones just for showing me that smile of his. It was fake. It didn't touch his eyes. He looked miserable inside and out, though he was putting on his strongest front.

"Hey, it's not your fault. C'mon, cheer up!" Sora ordered.

He slumped slightly just after that. He had instantly lost the smile. He would need more encouragement to keep on going. I bowed my head. Sora just made me want to go and track down Saix, obliterate him and burn whatever remained. So much for peace and equality. If I ever go back home, I knew I wouldn't be a good ambassador though I had known that way before now, what with my pension for calling people out on being idiots not the greatest diplomatic strategy in the world.

"Like I can even say that…" Sora muttered.

I blinked and wrapped an arm around the younger boy's shoulders in a friendly squeeze. He looked up at me before shaking me off and jerking up hitting Goofy in the process, knocking the trophy on the ground. Apparently he didn't like hugs. Or he didn't want the sympathy that would make him look all that much weaker.

"I gotta help Kairi!"

I glanced down at the four jewels that fell on the ground, three of them rolling to Hayner, Pence, and Olette. I watched as Sora crouched down and picked up the blue orb, inspecting it as he stood up before holding it up to the setting sun. Everyone else followed his lead, Donald looking around at everyone. Twilight glanced over at me as I gave a small gasp.

My eyes widened and I stared at where Sora had been standing, seeing Roxas there instead. Twilight placed a hand on my shoulder and shook it gently making me blink and shake my head as Donald and Goofy tried to snap Sora out of whatever trance he was in. He snapped out of it looking over at Donald and Goofy.

"Huh? What…?" Sora said.

I blinked and looked over at Twilight's hand on my shoulder as it started to glow, the blue orb in Sora's hand joining the light that was shining with a bright white light that was ever so familiar. I watched, feeling slightly nostalgic. We watched it float away from him for a moment, as he unlocked the next gate.

"Are you okay?" Twilight asked.

I blinked and rubbed my temples slightly, feeling a touch of a headache coming on but also to make any unwanted emotions float away. I didn't need those weighing down my heart. I already had enough to worry about at the moment. Twilight tilting her head seemingly listening to someone that no one else could hear. I looked up at her and nodded.

"Roxas." I explained.

Her mouth opened slightly as she let out a silent 'oh'. We looked back at the others. It was the marking point of harder battles. I wasn't sure if we were ready. This wasn't like the game. If we lost there was no restart button. People's lives were in danger. Our lives were in danger. And in that sense it was terrifying but it was also exhilarating in a way. It made you really appreciate that you were alive.

"What just happened?" Pence asked

Sora looked over at them, causing my eyes to roll as I smiled in amusement. I would just have to endure whatever came my way. I hadn't suffered a terrible injury yet. I was lucky. None of us had gotten severely hurt. It was surprising. I just hoped our luck held out. If anything bad happened to us then we were royally screwed.

"A new road is open. And Kairi and Riku are waiting somewhere along it." Sora said mystically.

I glanced over at Olette, crossing my arms. I was ready to go, ready to head out and try to strategize my plans. I still had to come up with a battle plan for Demyx. I felt the weight of lives on my shoulders and I felt fifty years older than what I really was. If I failed, innocent men would die. If I failed, Axel could die, Demyx could die. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if that happened.

"You'd better hurry, then." Olette said.

"You comin' back?" Hayner asked the all important question.

"Promise!" Sora said.

I glanced over at the setting sun one more time before following the others. _'Soon. Very soon.'_I mused. _'And Xemnas better be prepared for us!'_ I was going to be after blood for everything he had done to me, to Sora, to Twilight, to Axel and Demyx and to everyone else he had stepped on in order to get his heart back. I wouldn't let him get away if it was the last thing I did.


	24. Computer Crash Course

Well, here we go again. Beta-less and old writing. It's not all bad though, faster updates but not the style you guys have gotten used to lately. Been on a major Mass Effect pitch (I've also been playing my second run through of Dragon Age II) lately on top of the, what is it now, six-way war that's going on in my head. I've got six or seven stories that are all screaming write me, talk about headaches. ;) On to the important stuff though.

Shout outs: PyroKitsune, kingdomdisney, Alexandria Volturi, HeartlessVampireGirl, Anna Shiki, blue3ollie, Anna Shiki, BAYALE, Flyteless Kitsune, mauralucky7, KhAndTwilightFan15

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the OCs really would have thought you'd figured that out by now.

**Chapter 24: Computer crash course**

As soon as the next five hour trip was done everyone walked back into the walkways of Hollow Bastion. We all stopped as a group of Soldier Heartless ran in front of us, vanishing into their own portals of darkness as if it was déjà vu of when we had first gotten here. Oddly enough it was because someone was messing with the matrix… I glanced over at Sora as he asked "Do you think…"

I looked around as Goofy said "Looks like there's more Heartless now." The boys and Twilight jumped back and I looked over at her with a face silently asking _'Why are you jumping? You knew they would show up.' _

She shrugged as we broke off our silent conversation as Sora said "Let's go check in with everyone."

Twilight piped in saying "They're probably at Merlin's." They're always at Merlin's you'd think that he'd have figured that out by now.

Sora nodded as he looked back at the girl saying "Shall we?" I smiled as we walked off heading into the marketplace, heading towards Merlin's. Sora seemed to be doing alright, there was still a lingering sadness from the news about Kairi but he knew that there was nothing he could about it right now. He was pushing forward. I blinked as I saw Scrooge standing there with a Popsicle in his hand. As I looked past him I smiled as I spotted Cloud as he leaned against the wall past them. I walked past the boys and Twilight as they talked to Scrooge, Twilight glancing up at me as I walked past her keeping an eye on where I was going. She was probably worried that I would run into trouble. I can't help it if I'm a trouble magnet here. I stopped in front of the blond causing him to look up at me.

He blinked slightly as I said "This is becoming a habit."

He smirked slightly before losing the expression in that stoic way of his and directed his attention to Sora and the others that had come up behind me, Sora saying surprised "Oh, Cloud!"

I glanced back at them as Donald asked "Whatcha doing?"

I blinked as I turned back to Cloud as he answered vaguely "I'll get him. This time we settle it. Me, and the one who embodies all the darkness in me."

I tilted my head as Donald said "I thought you looked kinda different, Cloud."

He didn't look up as he responded "If I do, it's his fault."

'_Cloud I love you, platonically, but you seriously need to see a therapist sometime.'_

Sora was the one who asked, confused "Whose?"

I sighed as Cloud answered "Sephiroth. Tell me if you see him."

I glanced back at Sora as he said "Okay. What's he look like?"

'_He's pretty hard to miss.' _

I was repressing a smile as Cloud answered "Silver hair. Carries a long sword."

'_That's it. I'm never asking you for a description of someone again. Sephy is…distinct to say the least.' _

Sora nodded saying "Sure. Well, be seeing you, Cloud."

Sora turned to walk away but Cloud said warningly "Be careful. He messes with your head, makes you think darkness is the only way." My mouth twitched in a slight smile at the irony that he warning the person considered the User of Darkness.

We all turned as a young female voice asked "Is something wrong?" As we turned we saw Aerith standing there in all of her pink glory.

She moved past us as Cloud walked away, following him until he turned around saying "It's nothing." She leaned forward, making him lean back slightly as he continued "I don't want you involved."

Aerith back off slightly placing a hand on her chin thinking over his words for a moment before saying "You mean you don't want me there when you go away again?"

He quickly responded "I just…" He paused for a moment before continuing as I tilted my head walking up behind Aerith slightly to get a better view of his reactions "Listen, even if I go far away, I'll come back."

My grimace went unnoticed by everyone as she asked "Do you mean it?"

The blond looked away as he answered quietly "Yeah."

Aerith shook her head slightly before saying gently "See? You don't look so sure. Well, okay, I understand. Go… get things settled."

Cloud blinked in confusion asking "Huh?"

Aerith explained "No matter how far away you are… once you find your light… I'm sure it will lead you back here again. Right?"

I sighed quietly as Cloud answered the girl in front of me quietly "I suppose."

Aerith smiled and nodded saying cheerily "So I'll stay here… and I'll cheer for you… Okay, Cloud?"

The stoic blond nodded saying "Okay." His eyes lingered on her for a second longer before transferring to me as I waved over her shoulder with a smile. I was always too curious for my own good.

His mouth twitched slightly before he turned around and headed down the stairs, Sora walking over to Aerith as she watched him leave saying "Wonder if he'll be okay."

Sora glanced over at the girl as he responded "He'll be fine. I'm sure there's some light in him somewhere."

Aerith's face brightened as she said "You're right."

We watched as she wandered off somewhere and Twilight came up to Sora and asked "Should we head on to Merlin's?"

They nodded and we started off again, Sora looked back at me asking "You know Cloud?"

I smiled as I said "We've met."

The boy tilted his head as he asked "Where?"

I blinked and grabbed his elbow to keep him from walking into a wall as I replied "Here. I've run into him when we've made stops here." The boy smiled and nodded heading around a corner and running up to Merlin's house.

I shook my head with an amused sigh as I walked into the house. Cid was, as usual, typing at his computer but stopped and turned in his chair as we entered the house saying "Hey, fellas… you're just in time. Got some good news for ya, so get yourselves over to Leon's."

Sora tilted his head as he asked "What kind of news?"

Yuffie piped in, breaking off her conversation with Twilight, saying "We found the computer Ansem was using!"

I smiled as Cid continued "Yep. Should be able to get all kinds of info on the Heartless and the Organization."

Sora nodded eagerly before saying "And maybe something on the dark realm, too? It looks like that's where Riku and Kairi are."

Donald nodded as he added "And the King."

Cid thumbed his nose as he said "Go see for yourselves!"

Yuffie nodded and said peppily "It can't hurt!"

Sora blinked confused asking "What do you mean?"

Cid cut in before Yuffie could answer "Nothin'. Just get to the computer room through the castle postern. Watch your step!" I shook my head as everyone walked out. I glanced back at Twilight who was still talking to Yuffie.

I sighed and called back to her "Twilight. We're headed out, you coming?"

Twilight looked between me and Yuffie before calling back "Yeah, I'm coming!" I chuckled as I followed the boys, Twilight running to catch up to us, to the castle postern.

We were walking through the Bailey when a young female voice asked "Excuse me, are you with the Restoration Committee?" My eye twitched slightly as I turned around and spotted the pixies, otherwise known as Your Friendly Neighborhood Gullwings, or mini-versions of Yuna, Rikku, and Paine. Why they were pint sized pixies, I will never know. Sora walked up to them as Yuna asked "What's Leon's gang up to?"

'_Well at least she's straight forward about it.' _

Sora answered, as I crossed my arms, "They've got stuff to do over by the castle postern." I frowned, sighing I tuned out the rest of the conversation going back to the larger problem of how we were going to save Demyx's ass. I blinked shaking myself out of my thoughts as Twilight shook my shoulder.

I glanced over at her asking "Hm?"

She jerked a thumb over to the boys as they were leaving already saying "We're going." I nodded and we started following them, Twilight looking over at me as I walked.

I blinked slightly asking "What?"

She shook her head responding "Nothing." I raised an eyebrow but let it go. By the time the two of us reached the Postern the boys were already talking to Aerith, apparently just finishing as she pointed to where they need to go. The boys turned to where she was pointing and started running towards it. Both Twilight and I sighed and ran after them, waving to Aerith as we passed her. As we were walking through the maze of corridors we stopped for a moment as we heard a scampering, the boys looking around. Twilight and I looked up both of us smiling as we saw the blue alien running along the ceiling. The boys shrugged and walked on. I smirked shaking my head as I followed them. I shoved my hands into my pockets as we walked, Twilight being unusually quiet. I looked over at her; her head was tilted as if she was listening to something that I couldn't hear. Turning as I heard a door open in front of us, I looked into and around the well light room as the boys walked over to the large picture of Xehonart. I ran a hand on some of the books glancing at the titles. I didn't even glance at the others as I walked over to Ansem's desk, sitting down and rummaging through his drawers. Twilight walked over to me asking "What are you looking for?"

I glanced up at her, flipping through a file saying "I'll know it when I see it." Twilight blinked before shaking her head as I set the file back where it had been.

We all turned as someone said "Hey, you!" Over by the door Tifa was standing there, her hands on her hips. She looked around for a moment before saying "I'm looking for somebody. Have any of you seen a guy with spiky hair?" We all looked over at Sora as he pulled at one of locks.

'_Tifa, both you and Cloud SUCK at descriptions.' _

She laughed before saying "Spikier." Everyone shrugged and Tifa sighed before saying "I'll just take a look around." I was still looking through Ansem's desk barely glancing over at the brunette woman as she looked under the desk. I jumped as there was a loud thud as she kicked the wall. I was staring at her with wide eyes as she turned saying "Sorry to bother you."

I chuckled slightly as the boys straightened to attention replying in unison "No bother, ma'am."

I pushed myself away from the desk as the door closed looking over at where Leon appeared leaning against the wall smiling slightly as he said "So you made it."

The boys turned around and Twilight exclaimed "Leon!" She moved forward quickly and hugged the man, who awkwardly returned the hug for a moment before letting go.

He pushed himself away from the wall, Twilight stepping away slightly, as Sora asked "Isn't the King with you?"

Leon held a finger to his lips before lowering it and saying "You'll see him soon enough."

Donald gave an indigent cry "Hey!"

Leon gave a small smile before saying "Here, this ought to tide you over." I tilted my head as he pressed part of the wall revealing a secret door. Leon glanced behind himself explaining "Ansem's computer room." As we followed the steel hallway we came to the room with the very large keyboard in it.

I blinked in slight surprise as Sora ran past the rest of us to the computer saying "This is it!" He started taping on a few of the buttons asking "Where's Kairi? Where's Riku?"

'_It isn't voice activated Sora… most of the time.' _

I flinched as he started pounding on the keys at random, Leon and I both saying "Easy…" He glanced over at me for a moment but I had caught movement out of the corner of my eye and was tracking Stitch going up the wall as he continued saying "You wanna break it?"

Sora let up and turned scratching the back of his head as he said sheepishly "Oh, sorry. Guess I got a little carried away." Twilight walked over to the group as I stayed next to Leon. I smirked slightly before it vanished as Goofy caught sight of Stitch up on the ceiling. The blue alien, startled, let go of the ceiling and fell onto the keyboard causing me to flinch again at the loud thud.

Donald yelled at it "Get offa there!" The duck jumped onto the keyboard and chased Stitch slightly as he bounced away from the duck.

I blinked slightly as an alarm went off after Donald stomped on the keyboard, a deep voice emanating out of the sound system saying "Attention current user. This is a warning. Further misuse of this terminal will result in immediate defensive action."

Sora looking around, not realizing that it was the computer talking, asked "Who's there?"

The computer answered "I am the Master Control Program. I oversee this system."

Sora turned slightly asking "Where are you?"

Twilight who was standing next to Sora said "It's the computer."

Donald moved a step causing another alarm and all of saying accusingly "Donald!"

Both Leon and I put a hand on our foreheads, I glanced over at him lowering my hand saying slightly amused "We are way too much alike."

His mouth twitched slightly but it vanished as we both looked at the computer, where Donald was standing as it said "Decision gate reached. You are now under arrest."

Sora jerked back in surprise exclaiming "Arrest?"

Leon walked forward slightly his eyes landing on the laser that was charging, realizing what was happening he ordered the others "Run!"

They turned in surprise glancing over at Leon and me as I yelled "Watch out!" Noticing the brightening that was happening in front of them they looked over at the laser as it fired, digitizing Sora, Goofy, Donald, and Twilight. Leon gasped and I just sighed, slapping a hand to my forehead, as they vanished into the computer. Leon ran over to the computer, hesitating slightly as I sighed and said "I wouldn't worry too much about them, I'm pretty sure that they can handle anything that comes up."

He turned towards me; his eyes narrowed angrily "How can you stay so calm?" I glanced at him and shrugged, leaning against the wall and sliding down it so I was sitting on the ground.

I grimaced slightly '_Isn't that where they have the lightcycles? Now that's a scary thought Twilight and lightcycles in the same world.' _I glanced over at Leon who was using the keyboard like a normal person, gently tapping the keys, before I closed my eyes, my head thumping against the wall behind me. Leon glanced back at me for a second and I opened one eye, looking over at him as he sighed. I closed my eyes again for a moment before pushing myself up and walking over to Leon and leaned on the counter next to the computer watching his keystrokes.

It was about ten minutes after the four had been sucked into the computer and they had yet to get out. I was starting to get worried and I could tell that Leon was tense as well, though he was still trying to get the computer to work. We both turned around as we heard the power go on behind us. Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Twilight reappearing, I gave a small sigh of relief as Donald said excitedly "We did it!"

Leon stared at them before asking "Where have you been?"

Sora scratched the back of his head saying "Well, uh… There's a … world inside this computer, where these, um… programs live, and…"

I cut him off as he was confusing both me and Leon, and I _knew_ what was going on "Twilight can you please make what he's saying into something coherent."

She smiled and nodded before explaining "We were inside the computer mainframe. The programs have taken on human form, some of them anyways, and we had to reboot one of the terminals in the system to get out. The data we want we can't get access too though."

I blinked as Leon still looked slightly confused and I muttered up to him "I would just go with it, that's how I deal with all the strangeness."

He chuckled slightly before summing up what Twilight had said and what Sora had attempted to say, "So in other words… Ansem's research data is off-limits unless we know the password."

Sora nodded still confused "I think that's right."

'_Man, you can tell he hasn't had a lot of experiences with computers before this…maybe we should've given him a crash course beforehand…Nah.'_

Leon sighed as he said "But you've already defeated Ansem…"

Goofy scratched his cheek saying "Gawrsh, maybe we'll never find the password."

Leon shook his head sighing "That means… this was all a wild goose chase."

I blinked as we all turned around as Tifa said from behind us "You're chasing what, now? Well, well! A hidden room! Guess I'd better take another look around." I blinked again as she walked out and we all followed her back into the other room. By the time I reached the room as I had been lagging behind, looking at the larger room below, Tifa had taken the large picture off of the wall and was setting it down on the ground. She brushed off her hands moving back to where the portrait had been before punching the wall sending dust flying everywhere. She shrugged and turned around sighing before she left. I glanced back at her as she left momentarily before looking at the diagram on the wall.

'_It's not all that hard to read I don't know why Donald is going to have so much trouble reading it.' _I had picked up a particularly dusty set of books and set them on Ansem's desk, sitting in his chair and opening the first one carefully. I blinked in slight surprise to see that it was handwritten.

I glanced over at Leon as he walked in asking "What's up?"

Sora turned, pointing at the wall, saying excitedly "Look at this! This must be the dataspace! The DTD. See? The Door To Darkness!"

The older man walked over to the wall and placed a hand on his chin scanning the slightly faded diagram murmuring "What do you know. But…that still leaves the password."

We all turned to the door as the unmistakable voice of Mickey asked "Say, fellas, did somebody mention the Door to Darkness?"

The boys exclaimed happily "Your Majesty!" The short mouse held a finger to his mouth before looking around quickly and shutting the door behind him. He took his hood off and turned around only to be glomped by a very happy Donald. Goofy joined them, picking both up as I smiled and shook my head. Looking at the writing in the book it was a very clean hand, defiantly not written by a doctor. I glanced up as Leon leaned against the desk and watched the others as well.

I propped my chin on a fist and watched as Mickey asked, finally on the ground, "You mentioned the Door to Darkness?"

Goofy and Donald straightened to attention as Goofy answered "Uh, yes, sir! Ya see, we're lookin' for the secret password."

Surprised and confused Mickey asked "Password?" The boys slumped before Mickey said "Oh, I guess you mean like a code." Leon sighed with a slight shake of his head as my hand slapped my forehead… again. Not noticing the two of us the mouse continued "Well, the Door To Darkness can only be opened by seven princesses. There's Snow White, Jasmine, and Belle…"

He stopped as Leon said "Of course…" The older man uncrossed his arms before pushing off the desk and heading back into the computer room.

Mickey watched him leave for a moment before turning back to the others asking "What're you tryin' to do?"

Sora explained to the King "With that password, we can get access to Ansem's research data."

Mickey jumped excitedly exclaiming "So that means you might be able to find out where he is!"

Sora gave a slight laugh as he said "Stop jokin' around, Your Majesty. We already defeated Ansem. You know that."

I cut in saying "Not everything is as it appears to be." They turned to stare at me before directing their attention back to the King, Twilight coming towards me.

As soon as she was close enough she hissed "Yeah, like that won't break our cover."

I blinked before pointing at a line in the book "It says so right here."

She spun the book gently so she could read it and scanned the line before going "Humph. Who would've thunked it?"

I chuckled as Leon came back in asking "Hey, isn't Tron waiting for you guys?"

The boys looked in between Leon and the King a couple of times before the King said "Don't worry. I'm not goin' anywhere. If those Heartless attack, I'll stand and fight with everybody here."

Sora nodded saying "Yeah…we will, too."

Mickey replied as Twilight walked away from the desk heading towards Leon "Then let's talk more later."

I rolled my eyes as Donald said "That's a promise!"

The mouse nodded, as I gently set the handwritten book that I had been reading to the side and picked up another one, "I'll see ya when you get back." I watched as the boys ran into the computer room and sighed as I settled down to read, scan more like, the book that I had in front of me. Mickey walked into the computer room for a moment before coming back out.

I blinked as Mickey walked over to me and asked "What're you looking for?"

I smiled slightly answering "I'll know it when I find it."

He looked over the books that were on the table commenting "You sure are interested in Hearts. Should you really be reading all of this?"

I blinked before directing my attention to the mouse standing next to the chair, raising an eyebrow in confusion "What do you mean?"

He blinked before saying "You're the User of Darkness; you must have a lot to deal with." My eyes narrowed slightly as I looked down at the mouse before I sighed and shook my head irritated.

'_Why does everyone who knows about that damn legend think I'm going to go and sell them out? I'm not that kind of person.' _I pushed myself away from the desk and headed into the computer room. Leon was once again at the computer and I sat next to him on the counter. I sighed and asked "Do I _seem_ like the kind of person that would betray her friends or something?" He glanced over at me and raised an eyebrow.

"No." I grinned and nodded looking over at the screen as it turned orange and pixel versions of the Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Twilight showed up. Leon glanced at it before turning around as they appeared behind us.

Sora walked over to us saying "Well, that's that!"

Leon smiled jerking a thumb over his shoulder at the screen saying "Look."

Sora's smile widened into a grin as he said quietly "Tron… hang in there."

Leon glanced down at the boy asking "So, where do we start?"

Sora turned holding up a finger saying "I know! Let's access the DTD!" Sora walked away slightly, allowing Leon to get to the keyboard.

The older man noticed the boys looking around and said reassuringly "The King's checking the situation in town. He'll be back soon, so don't worry. Hey, look it's asking for a password."

I blinked as Goofy said "That's easy. It's…"

Sora jerked forward saying "Sora!"

Leon smirked turning back to the keyboard typing in what they said, Donald holding up a finger as I laughed quietly "Donald!"

Goofy straightened up saying "Goofy!"

Twilight stepped forward saying "Twilight!"

Leon didn't look back as he typed their names in muttering "That's… to the point."

I looked over at him, as Sora walked up, asking "Well?"

He straightened up, glancing over at me saying "That did it. We're in. I have to go into town. Need to see what that last shakeup did."

Sora asked surprised "You're not gonna check out the data? It wasn't exactly easy to get!"

He looked over at the screen saying "I'm coming right back. Hey, Sora… why don't you get started on loading the data and copying it down?" He looked over at the boy and I laughed quietly at Sora's hopeless, terrified expression before Leon said "It's just a few keystrokes. Easy, right?" Leon patted Sora's shoulder as he walked by giving a slight wave before walking out.

I glanced over at Sora and the others as I hopped off of the counter saying "I'm gonna head over with Leon."

Twilight looked between the Sora and I before chasing after me as I left "Wait, up! I'm coming too!"


	25. The Beginning of the End

Well here we go again. Since I'm not evil (plus I owe you for all the late-ness that's been happening) this part 1 of 3 that'll be uploaded in quick succession. This is also a really short one which is also a reason for why I'm uploading another.

Shout outs: Flyteless Kitsune, kingdomdisney, Kora Bloom, Alexandria Volturi, Axel'sChakrams8, Kawaiikitty513, Kim2000, FireWolfHeart, and sora0995.

Disclaimer: I own nothing that you recognize.

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**Chapter 25: The beginning of the End**

I smiled as Twilight ran past me and caught up to Leon as he entered the maze of corridors that lead to the outside. I followed the two of them quietly as Twilight talked to Leon quickly about what had been going on since she had left Hollow Bastion. I was walking my eyes to the ground when there was a loud explosion. Everyone looked around and my eyes landed on Aerith and I asked Twilight quietly as I summoned my sword "When did Aerith get here?"

Twilight smiled slightly as she answered; unsheathing her sword "She's been with us since we left the castle. You really didn't notice?"

I blinked as I slashed into a Heartless, sidestepping another attack before destroying that Heartless. I blinked slightly as I heard Sora yell "We'll help!" I glanced behind me slightly before ducking an attack from a Dancer Nobody.

'_Man, these things are annoying!' _ I waved a hand casting Thunder at the Nobody, following it up with my sword. I sighed as the last one fell for the moment giving everyone a slight breather before I followed Leon, Twilight running after me.

We stopped as the man turned around and yelled back to the boys "The King's in the bailey. You better head over there!"

Sora nodded and yelled back "Got it!"

I waved over to the brunette yelling "We're gonna stick with Leon for now, we'll catch up with you later!" The boy waved back as we turned and ran with Leon, destroying the Heartless that got in our way, making our way to the cavern. My sword went through one of the Heartless and I spun around blocking the attack of another only to have that Heartless disappear. Blinking in confusion I looked up to see Cloud standing in front of me, sword out.

He smirked slightly saying "You should really be more careful." I returned the smirk for a moment before noticing that we were surrounded. Cloud and Leon backing up until their backs touched as they faced the opposite sides. Twilight was standing next to Leon and I stepped next to Cloud, eyes flicking everywhere before they landed on the top of the wall where there was a smaller number of Heartless and Nobodies.

I smirked slightly as Leon asked Cloud "Think you can handle this many?"

The blond man standing next to me smirked and replied "Well… Might be tough if one more shows up."

Leon gave a short laugh before saying "Then that'll have to be the one I take care of."

Cloud glanced back slightly asking "What, you're fighting too?"

I glanced at the two saying "Guys as much as I love the fact that you are _proving_ that you have senses of humor, me and Twilight need to get up there."

The two men glanced up at where I was pointing before Cloud asked "Why?"

I blinked answering seriously "There's something we need to do and we need move fast. You're just going to have to trust me on this one."

The blond blinked slightly as I turned to Twilight asking "You think you can put a barrier up on both sides?"

She stared at me like I was crazy before screeching "I've barely gotten a handle on this and you want me to put one up that big?"

Cloud and Leon had already started to get rid of the Heartless and I glanced back at Cloud for a second, making sure that he was doing alright, before saying "Yeah. I know this is a lot to ask but we need to move fast and that is the fastest route right now. Now, can you do it?" She gulped before nodding and closing her eyes. I backed up slightly, as light gathered around her, yelling "Cloud! Leon! Get your asses over here!" The two men jumped back towards us as Twilight spread her arms light shooting from her hands, creating barriers on either side of the small group. As soon as the barriers were up Cloud and Leon finished off the ones that had somehow managed to stay inside. I blinked as Cloud grabbed me by the waist and jumped onto the ledge before jumping back down and doing the same thing for Twilight, who slumped on the ground. I nodded my thanks to the blond before he jumped back to the ground and I placed a hand on Twilight's shoulder saying "Let it go, Twilight." The girl, her eyes still closed, nodded and sighed as the barrier vanished. I shook her shoulder lightly before standing up saying "We need to keep moving." The girl nodded and pushed herself up with a groan. My head jerked back and my fist slammed into the Heartless that had been coming up behind me. I grabbed Twilight's wrist and started to drag her along as we ran towards the place that Demyx was fighting Sora, geysers already springing up as I prayed desperately, prayed like I had never before or would probably ever do again, '_Please, please be a bitch to fight like you were in the game!' _We needed to get there before Demyx was killed; it was gonna be close. My head jerked up as I felt the darkness that I had associated with Demyx begin to fade and flung a hand out, darkness rippling over it. Twilight stared as a pillar of darkness flowed away from the battlefield that Demyx had been and slumped to the ground a hand over her mouth before a heart broken scream tore itself from her throat.

"NOO!"

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A/N: now before you all kill me, hit the next button first. Thanks.


	26. Argument

Part 2 of 3. The fun continues while I hide behind any and all cover I can find.

Disclaimer: Still the same as the last one.

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**Chapter 26: Argument**

I turned around and held a hand out summoning the portal, Demyx falling out of it. I slumped, falling backwards, only to fell hands on my shoulders holding me up. I blinked slightly, glancing up to see familiar piercing green eyes and purple tear drop tattoos. Twilight had looked over at the place that Demyx had fallen her eyes widening as she spotted the musician. I winced as she screamed "DEMYX" in relief before running over to him as he stood up only to fall back on the ground as Twilight tripped on something landing on him, her mouth connecting to his. I winced as there was a flash of light, blinking the spots out of my vision to see her still laying on him. She turned red and pushed herself hastily off of him, helping him to stand up. I tilted my head slightly sensing something different with the blond man in front of me. I shook it off as he reached over and pulled Twilight back to him, stroking away a few of her tears before gently kissing her forehead. My eyes widened and I turned around, giving the couple all the privacy they wanted. Axel coughed reminding them that they did have an audience and I peeked back at the two as they both turned red, they didn't pull apart Demyx holding the girl from behind, arms wrapped around her waist. I stumbled over to one of the rocks and sat on the ground my back resting against a triumphant smile spreading across my face.

Axel walked over and looked down at me before asking "How did you know?"

I blinked before looking up at him asking "Know what?"

His eyes narrowed as he elaborated "That Demyx was in trouble."

I blinked, staring up at him '_Shit! I was so focused on saving his ass I forgot that Axel might start asking questions.' _His eyes narrowed further and he glared down at me as I didn't answer.

I winced slightly as he said tone harshly "Trying to think up a pretty story to tell me."

I gawped up at him before pushing myself up, tired my patience was thin, my control over a sharp tongue even shorter than normal "Where the hell did that come from?"

I returned his glare and Twilight looked between us as he demanded "You haven't exactly been entirely truthful with me have you? You haven't told me anything about where you've come from or your life before now! How did you _know_ that Demyx was in trouble?"

My frown deepened as I responded sharply "You never exactly asked me about where I came from! And frankly enough I don't need time to think up a pretty story to tell you, if I wanted to I could tell you one right now. The hard part is trying to explain the truth when I don't even know all of it!"

He crossed his arms and demanded "Tell me how you knew Demyx was in trouble."

I stared up at him for a moment before saying "Later."

I started to walk past him but he grabbed my arm hissing, "No. You'll explain now." I glanced at his hand and it tightened on my arm before glaring up at him for a moment before taking a deep breath.

Closing my eyes I let the breath go, forcing myself to relax and tried to say as calmly I could "I'll… explain everything later but the middle of a major battle isn't the best place or time for this." I opened my eyes and looked up at him, silently pleading with the red head, green eyes boring into my blue ones.

He nodded stiffly and released my arm muttering angrily "Fine. Later." With that said he portalled off, vanishing into the darkness.

I sighed before turning to Demyx saying "Dem… you can't go back to the Org. anymore." He nodded giving Twilight a slight squeeze as I continued "You're going to have to lay low from now on until this has been resolved, if they find out you're still alive you're going to be branded a traitor and I doubt Sora would take it very well if he found out you're still around either."

The blond sighed and nodded before saying "I'll stick to the corridors of darkness like Axel." He summoned a portal behind him and kissed Twilight on the cheek murmuring something before stepping into the portal.

As soon as it vanished Twilight turned to me and opened her mouth, her expression concerned but I raised a hand cutting her off saying "I don't want to talk about it. Besides we need to catch up with Sora and the others." She hesitated for a second before nodding, turning around and running towards the crystal cavern. I looked at the ground, my hand clenching into a fist, chest tight, before running after Twilight.

I glanced around the empty fissure hearing Twilight give a yelp as she ducked back inside saying "I found the boys."

I looked over at her silently before saying "Let me guess, they're surrounded by about three thousand Heartless each one going to take on 1000 Heartless all at once." Twilight grinned as she nodded her smile fading as she saw that I didn't return it as I watched her. Turning I walked towards her before setting my back against the wall, staring out at the battlefield quietly. Twilight stared at me as I watched the battle progress. I blinked slowly before looking back at Twilight asking "Shall we?" She nodded, keeping close to me throughout the battle concerned. As I fought it was automatic reactions, the fire wasn't there like it normally was and I was screaming on the inside, trying to bring it back up.

The last of the Heartless vanished and I took stock over the various cuts that I had gained throughout the fight. The most serious one being on my arm but that was taken care of quickly by a Hi-potion that I had dug out of my pocket. I was still bleeding from some of the cuts but it was nothing serious and I didn't bother with them as I followed Sora silently. I placed a hand on his shoulder as he slumped against the wall, gasping for breath; he glanced up at me and smiled. I didn't return it, nodding slightly instead. I looked back as Goofy and Donald ran towards us, Twilight waving over to them. I blinked as Sora asked "Where's the King?"

Twilight watched me in concern as I pointed to where the mouse was fighting, Donald yelling "There he is!" I glanced at them as the boys ran past me, quickly following them, Twilight staying by my side.

I gave a slight sigh as I listened to Xemnas say "How long has it been since I abandoned that name…"

Twilight stared at me in surprise as I didn't even roll my eyes at Sora as he demanded "Out with it, Nobody! Where's Kairi? Where's Riku?"

Xemmy turned around as he said "I know nothing of any Kairi. As for Riku…Perhaps you should ask your king." I glanced up at him as he summoned a portal, Mickey yelling and running after him.

The others ran to the edge of the cliff and I walked slowly to them as Sora said disappointed "He's gone…" The boy slumped and sat on the ground, banging his fist against the ground a few times, stopping only when Goofy placed a hand on his shoulder.

Donald watched the two of them sadly saying "Sora, Goofy." The duck jerked forward at the sight of…nothing.

All of the Heartless and Nobodies were gone, while they had been there a few seconds before, Goofy asking "What's goin' on?"

I turned slightly as Axel's familiar voice said "Way to fall right into their trap." He was leaning against the cliff face and I felt my throat constrict slightly as I watched the boys run past us, stopping slightly before Axel. Twilight gripped my hand, giving it a comforting squeeze as Axel pushed himself away from the cliff saying "C'mon, it's a set-up by Organization XIII. Xemnas is using you to destroy the Heartless…that's his big master plan."

Donald asked confused "Xemnas?"

Axel gave a small smirk saying "The guy you just saw. He's their leader. Got it memorized? X-E-M, N-A-S."

Sora relaxed slightly and Goofy straightened up asking "Organization XIII wants to get rid of the Heartless?"

The red head placed a hand on his hip and shook his head saying "Man, you're slow. Every Heartless slain with that Keyblade releases a captive heart. That is what the Organization is after."

Donald asked "So what are those guys gonna do with the hearts?"

Axel shook his head and said "I'm not telling."

I blinked as Sora yelled "You… you're the one who kidnapped Kairi!"

Axel watched the shorter brunette and said "Bingo. The name's Axel. Got it memorized?"

Sora ignored the question and demanded "Where is Kairi?" Axel scratched his head and looked down slightly hesitating as Sora pleaded "Please. Just tell me!"

Axel placed both hands on his hips and looked up for a second before saying "Look, about Kairi… I'm sorry."

I glanced at the place where a new portal was forming as a voice said "Axel!"

Axel backed up exclaiming "Uh-oh!" A portal formed around him as he glared at Sai, who had just emerged from his own.

Sora ran forward slightly but was stopped as Sai held out an arm saying "We'll ensure he receives the maximum punishment."

I looked down and sighed as Sora yelled "I don't care about any of that! Just let me into the realm of darkness, okay?"

I glanced up as Sai turned around saying "If it's Kairi you're worried about, don't. We're taking very good care of her."

I sighed quietly again as Sora said "Take me to her."

We watched as Sai asked "Is she that important to you?"

Sora nodded saying "Yeah. More than anything."

'_Sora, you young naïve thing. You're giving your enemy ammo.' _

Sai looked down at the young boy and said "Show me how important."

My eyes widened before they narrowed into a glare at the Luna Diviner as Sora kneeled on the ground and begged "Please."

Sai looked down at him arrogantly saying "So, you really do care for her. In that case…the answer is no."

Sora jumped up yelling angrily "You rotten…!"

I blinked as Sai continued "Are you angry? Do you hate me? Then take that rage, and direct it at the Heartless." He snapped his fingers and Heartless appeared behind him and he raised his hands, looking at the sky saying "Pitiful Heartless, mindlessly collecting hearts. And yet they know not the true power of what they hold. The rage of the Keyblade releases those hearts. They gather in darkness, masterless and free…until they weave together to make Kingdom Hearts. And when that time comes we can truly, finally exist."

Maleficent's voice cut in as she appeared in a spurt of green and black flames saying "What in the world do you think you're prattling on about? Kingdom Hearts belongs to me! The heart of all kingdoms, the heart of all that lives. A dominion fit to be called Kingdom Hearts must be my dominion!"

Sora yelled as she spread her arms "Maleficent, no! No more Heartless!"

She glanced down at the boy saying arrogantly "I do not take orders from you!" She summoned more Heartless, which appeared and surrounded Sai.

He didn't even glance at them as he muttered "Fool…" He snapped his fingers and Dusks appeared destroying the Heartless easily. The Dusks turned to us but didn't go anywhere as Maleficent got in the way creating a barrier of black and green flames between us and the Nobodies.

She didn't look back while she said "While I keep these creatures at bay, you devise a way to vanquish them…forever!" The Dusks jumped on her and she continued "Do not misunderstand me. I shall have my revenge on you yet." She glanced back at the boys as more Dusks jumped on her, making her fall, while on the ground she still managed to order "Leave! Now!"

Stealing her line Sora yelled back "I don't take orders from you!"

He started to move forward but was grabbed by Twilight and Donald who insisted "Sora! C'mon!"

The boy protested "But… what about…"

He looked back as the flames dissipated and Sai said "Now then. Where did we leave off?" He snapped his fingers again and the Dusks disappeared only to be replaced by Heartless which surrounded us. The constant switching between enemies and being surrounded was getting a little old.

Sora looked around before demanding of the Heartless "Which side are you guys on anyway?"

My eyes flicked over to Sai as he answered "The Heartless ally with whoever's the strongest. Your User of Darkness is in no condition to be taking control over them either." Sora glanced back at me before turning back to the Heartless as they attacked almost automatically destroying them. Sai watched the hearts float up into the sky before saying "Yes, Sora! Extract more hearts!" The blue haired man vanished into a portal and we all backed up so that everyone was back to back. I was only dodging attacks everyone else defending. I glanced down slightly as I felt a concentration of darkness before giving a surprised yelp as we all were sucked into the pool of darkness.

It was pitch black where we ended up and I sighed as I saw the others walking over to Sora, joining them as Goofy asked "What's this place?"

I rolled my eyes slightly as Sora exclaimed "It must be the Realm of Darkness!" I blinked slightly as I turned around and spotted the dark figure standing there with a box.

He vanished, leaving the box behind which was immediately picked up by Donald asking "What is it?"

As Donald inspected the box Goofy asked "Are you sure you wanna open… that?" His questioning didn't do anything as Donald opened the box anyway revealing a picture and a Popsicle. Donald took out the picture and handed it to Sora. I looked over the boy's shoulder, Goofy saying "Gawrsh, it's the gang from Twilight Town. There's Hayner, Pence, Olette… and, um…uh?"

Both Sora and I said at the same time "Roxas."

Donald looked up at the two of us asking "You know him?"

I nodded as Sora answered "No…The name just popped into my head… This is Roxas."

Donald waggled the Popsicle for a moment before sticking it in his mouth, Goofy asking as he did so "Are ya sure you wanna eat…that?"

The duck jumped as he tasted the Popsicle saying "Salty…No…sweet!" The Popsicle glowed and started to float away allowing Sora to open the next gate. I ignored Sora as there was a flash of light and we ended up back on the gummi ship. I slumped in my seat, closing my eyes not even questioning anything as they took off towards the next world.


	27. Runaway Sniper Style

The final bit of the three part update. So please don't kill me. You really didn't expect everything to go off without a hitch, that would just be unrealistic...which is an odd concept if you really consider the rest of the series.

Disclaimer: I have yet to own anything that will make me as much money as the KH series would if I owned it.

* * *

**Chapter 27: Runaway Sniper style**

It was night when we reached the Land of Dragons and the boys decided to make camp in the abandoned village for the night. I blinked as I silently listened to their snoring before pushing myself up and heading into the nearby cave. Twilight watched me as I entered into it and followed after me. If there was any place that we would end up talking to the two Nobodies that we had befriended it would be here. I sighed and sat in the middle of the cave, closing my eyes as Twilight sat against a wall, both of waiting for Axel and Demyx to appear. The two came into the cave via portal and I didn't move as I felt the portal form, I didn't even twitch. I opened my eyes for a moment to see Axel watching me coldly while Demyx headed over to Twilight to sit next to her. Axel moved across from me, leaning against the wall of the cave ordering "Alright, now talk." I opened my eyes slowly, looking up at him silently before nodding silently.

By the end of the explanation both of the Nobodies mouths had dropped open and they were staring at us like we were insane, which I wasn't surprised about. We had been trying to keep this away from them for a reason. Axel blinked rapidly as he watched me pacing around the cave, my arms crossed over my chest, my eyes cast downward focused on the ground. He blinked one more time before slowly drawling out, "So, let me get this straight. You're saying that in your world we're…from a video game?" I stopped pacing to look him straight in the eye as I nodded, a stiff jerk of my head. I glanced over at Twilight as she dragged Demyx out of there; sensing the tension that was building in the air and to work on her own explanation. She didn't want to be caught between this potential argument. "So you're saying that none of this is real?" I turned my attention back to Axel and his deceptively calm voice. His vivid, livid, green eyes staring into my resolute, defiant blue ones. "Everything that's happened isn't real? Everything you told me was a lie? This isn't actually reality?" A pissed off pyro is one of the scariest things anyone could face so I had a temporary break with my sanity after he yelled that. Not a break into I was ready to piss my pants scarred but quite the opposite. My reaction was subtle, the lids of my eyes dropping about halfway before I did something he didn't expect, something he had never seen directed at him before. My temper flared. My temper is the one thing that I always keep control of for very simple reasons; when my temper flares I tend to get dramatic and stupid. So _I _wasn't surprised when I was holding up my now bloody left hand because I had slice open my palm with the bowie that was clenched in my right. I wasn't surprised when I started yelling at him.

"This hurts Axel! This is reality! It may not have been my reality in the beginning but as soon as I stepped into it, it became it! There is no reset button here! I could die! Twilight could die! You or Demyx could die! Hell, even Sora could bite the dust and if that happens the whole multi-verse might as well throw up its hands 'cause we'd all be screwed if that happens!" He stared at me with wide, shocked, eyes his mouth gawping at me as I continued on, "Reality is based on perspective Axel. I don't know how I got here and I don't know why; so I'm sorry I didn't tell you when I don't even fucking know it myself!" I spun around, closing my eyes so I could try and regain control of myself, my shoulders stiff with tension as I tried not to lash out at him again; my nails digging into the palms of my hands as I clenched them tightly, trying for the life of me to keep from crying. I was so rung out with these emotions, I was tired.

Axel stared at the girl in front of him. For the entirety of the explanation she had been monotonistic and practically expressionless. Even through the anger he had noted it and a small tendril of worry had cropped into his mind before he had crushed it. His green eyes lowered to her bleeding hand. She was making it worse but it seemed like she didn't care at the moment, if she could even feel it. He had never seen her like this before and this was their first real argument. He had forgotten. A sharp pain went through the empty hole in his chest where his heart was supposed to be. He watched her for a little longer before asking quietly "Why didn't you tell me?"

I stared at the ground, the tension finally leaving my shoulders as they slumped helplessly, as I answered "I didn't…" I paused trying to swallow my pride enough to give him a truthful answer but he cut in.

"…trust me?" I glanced over my shoulder at him peering through the hair that hid my eyes, shaking my head.

"It wasn't that, Axel. It was never a matter of trust. God, I trust you to watch my back." He raised an eyebrow at me questioningly and a small smile twitched on my mouth briefly as I turned back around facing him with a shrug explaining "In my speak that means I trust you with my life." His eyes widened in surprise as I continued, trying to get him to understand the true significance of what I had just said "There's only been one other person who's ever been trusted with that and they aren't even in this universe." My eyes lowered to the ground once again as he took in what I had said.

He blinked before asking "Then what was it?" I ran a hand through my hair, swallowing the lump in my throat that was my pride.

I looked away slightly as I answered "I…" I sighed before continuing "I don't know, maybe I was just…scared… of how you'd react." I wasn't looking at him as I said that and I ran a hand over my face before glancing up, Axel was looking down still trying to process what he had been told. I waited for a moment before asking timidly "So…maybe, we can start over? No hiding."

He blinked before nodding slowly and saying with a slight smile "Hi, I'm Axel. I'm a member of an evil Organization that wants to create Kingdom Hearts so that we can become whole. I am considered a traitor to that Organization because I refused to kill my best friend. I also am a part of a video game."

I gave a quiet, weak laugh before replying as I smiled slightly "I'm Ghost. I come from a world where none of this is real and am just in a constant state of confusion because it is." Axel laughed as I blew a strand of hair out of my face an easy but still slightly wary smile present. He grinned and my smile turned genuine once again. I blinked as I heard giggles and from the look on Axel's voice he had heard them as well. We both rolled our eyes and I turned to the cave entrance a blond mullet pulling out of sight. I shook my head with a smile, my arms crossed, Axel coming up behind me and I looked up at him. We smirked before silently headed towards where our two eavesdroppers were. Demyx poked his head out again and I grabbed him in a headlock, the blond giving a surprised squeak before struggling out of my grip as I laughed at him.

Twilight grinned and said "You two better get going, we need to sleep for tomorrow."

Demyx blinked asking confused "Why's tomorrow so important?"

I smirked answering "We get to play with Xiggy for a little bit." I looked up at Axel as his eyes narrowed and I said "We don't get to fight him, he runs off. He just messes with Sora's head and we deal with Sniper Nobodies and a really big dragon Heartless. We'll be fine." He nodded, concern still showing in his eyes our previous fight left in the past. I smiled as he vanished into a portal, Demyx following him.

As soon as the portal vanished Twilight grinned at me saying "Well, I'm glad that things are back to normal between you and Axel. It was weird, you being depressed and all."

I smirked and shook my head saying "Not depressed, simply returned to an earlier state."

She stared at me confused as I walked out into the night asking "Huh?"

I sighed and forced a smile as I explained "I was acting how I acted back in…a different time, when I was thought of as the 'freaky quiet girl that you don't want to mess with'. I still had my rep back then. It died down somewhat after a while, except amongst those that had known me before." She stared at me for a moment as I settled down and closed my eyes for the night. Trying to suppress the memories of a time when I had forced myself to deny emotions as much as possible.

* * *

We had barely started moving when a dark, hooded figure appeared before us. Sora started running after him, only to turn around in surprise as we heard a familiar voice call out "Sora!" I watched as Mulan ran up to us and placed her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath.

Sora said to the gasping girl "Mulan, hey. No time to talk. We gotta catch that guy!"

She stood up, her eyes narrowing before she walked forward saying "I'm following him, too!"

I smiled as Donald jerked a thumb at himself saying "Then let's go!" As we headed up the mountain destroying the Heartless that got in the way, Mulan and Sora chatted quietly, getting caught up on what the two of them had been doing since they had last saw each other. The girl tapped Sora on the shoulder silently and pointed over to where the dark figure was running towards the ridge. I sighed and started running as I followed the two of them to the ridge. Why we had to run up the mountain…I really should have asked that.

Looking around the snow covered ridge there was no one to be seen and Mulan said "Looks like he got away."

Taking the opportunity Goofy asked "How come you're after somebody from Organization XIII?"

She turned to the bipedal dog confused asking "What is that?"

Sora answered "The guy in black."

'_Sora, not everyone in black is in the Org. You have to be a bit more specific.' _

Donald added on to the boy's explanation by saying "One of the bad guys!"

Mulan put her hands on her hips saying "I knew it. There's a rumor in the Imperial City about a spy in black, lurking in the mountains. I'd been up here tracking him, but when you arrived, I lost him."

Sora's face took on a slightly sad expression as Goofy bowed his head saying regretfully "Sorry!"

Mulan chuckled slightly saying with a smile "Don't apologize. But I do wonder where he went."

'_Not very far trust me, Riku didn't go very far at all.' _I tilted my head as I looked at the top of the ridge as multitudes of Heartless gathered, eye twitching.

Looking down at Donald, he slumped and asked in tired astonishment "Again?" He shook his head and slumped further down as the Heartless started charging us, my sword appearing in my hand.

Everyone's weapons came out and Sora said "Okay, first things first!" He started to charge but stopped the others running past him as I paused, turning to see him staring at the hooded figure. I rolled my eyes swinging my sword into the Heartless that had come up behind me as Sora yelled "Hey, you! Quit sneakin' around!" I glanced back as the hooded figure, otherwise known as Riku summoned his Keyblade. Mentally I was yelling at Sora as I continued to fight through the seemingly never ending hordes of Heartless.

'_SORA! How the bloody hell can't you tell that that is Riku? C'mon the guy's your best friend and you can't recognize him from the bloody Keyblade at least or the fighting style? The guy has a very distinct fighting stance!' _I blinked as I looked around noticing that there were no longer any Heartless and turned to see Sora running away from the ridge slightly. I ran after him and stopped next to him as the others walked up behind us, placing a hand on the boy's shoulder I raised an eyebrow at him, concern obvious.

Donald walked up next to the two of us asking the brunette "Are you okay, Sora?"

Goofy leaned around me and asked "Did ya get 'im?"

My eye twitched slightly but I held my tongue, at the extremely insensitive question, Sora responding after a second "Hmm… Oh…he's gone." He had probably gotten the suspicion that it was Riku and he wasn't as oblivious as I had previously thought.

I leaned back slightly as Donald jumped up asking surprised "What? You lost him?"

Sora placed a hand behind his head looking around slightly before taking it down and scratching his cheek saying "Anyway… What now?"

Twilight and I looked at each other as Goofy said "I think that we better get rid of all of the Heartless first."

Donald nodded his arms crossed and we all jumped as there was a loud explosion everyone looking around confused I glanced over at Mulan as she said "Come on, we better get off the mountain." As we walked down there was another explosion and the Storm Rider flew into the air, hovering for a moment before flying off. Mulan tracking it gasped and pointed saying desperately "It's heading for the city! We've got to warn Shang!" We turned and ran down the mountain not even bothering to stop at the Checkpoint, leaving behind some very confused and panicking soldiers. I jumped over a Heartless as we headed towards the Imperial City, stopping in the Imperial Square to see that nothing was wrong…at the moment.

Sora blinked in surprise as he looked around saying "Huh? Everything's fine."

I glanced back as Yao said gruffly "Well, now… Look who decided to show up."

Donald crossed his arms and glared asking "What? Is that a problem?"

Ling waved the question off as he answered "Nah!"

My head jerked up as Chien-Po said softly "We're just glad you're not in black cloaks."

Mulan's eyes widened and she gasped asking "You saw him?"

Yao nodded answering "Yeah…he's in the palace."

Mulan turned and ran towards the palace everyone else following her as I yelled back to the three "And you didn't think that maybe that was IMPORTANT!"

Sora slammed into the gigantic doors of the palace, banging on the doors yelling "Open up!"

Twilight and I backed up to where Mulan was standing looking around and Twilight smirked as she pointed up and Mulan nodded yelling over to the boys, where they were epically failing at opening the doors, "Over here!"

Twilight stared at the pillar that the boys were scrambling up before exclaiming "I can't do that!"

I turned to her an eyebrow raised as I said "And you think I can?" I gripped her arm and concentrated on the opening where I portalled up too. I gasped as the portal dissipated around us, saying "I don't think I'm going to be trying that again, anytime soon." I slumped, leaning against the wall, closing my eyes as exhaustion swept over me; portalling was both mentally and physically exhausting. I was definitely going to have to work on it before I got any good. I opened one eye and looked over at Goofy, whose head had just popped up over the edge and Twilight went to help him up. I waited, slowly regaining my energy as the others came up, before pushing myself away from the wall and walking further down the beam, careful of my balance. I looked down at the large doors on the inside, a hooded figure standing in front of them. Glancing over my shoulder I saw the others joining me and I lowered myself down slightly hanging from the beam before allowing myself to drop, landing low and quiet. The others followed me, Donald and Twilight falling over as they landed.

We moved forward quietly and as we got closer Mulan called "Wait!" The figure, Xiggy, cringed before turning around.

I blinked as Sora straightened up, moving forward slightly asking "…Riku?"

I grabbed his shoulder pulling him back saying "That's not Riku." Xiggy pulled his hood off reveling the eye patch, scars, and the ponytail with grey streaks in it.

As he lowered his arms he said "No. Never heard of him." I glanced around for a moment at the Sniper Nobodies that appeared distracting everyone before smirking as I watched Xiggy take the opportunity and run off before turning my attention back to the fight at hand. Sora was, somehow, using warp as the rest of us made do with what we could. With Sora moving at lightning speeds the battle didn't take long and we all had come out of it relatively unscathed.

I placed a hand on Sora's shoulder as Goofy said "Guess it wasn't Riku."

Mulan hesitated for a moment before saying "Sorry, Sora. I can't stay. I'm worried about Shang!"

The boy's head jerked up and he said "Oh! Right!" I patted his shoulder with an amused smirk before he walked up to the doors and opened them and entered into the Throne room. I stood aside as Mulan quickly walked in, smiling slightly as I followed her. Mulan gave a relieved sigh as she saw Shang standing next to the Emperor, who was sitting on his Throne.

I gave a two finger salute over to Shang and he nodded to me as Mulan exclaimed "Your Excellency! Shang! Something terrible has happened! We saw a huge monster fly out of the mountains and toward the city!"

'_And yet somehow we made it here before it did. Does anyone else notice that it should have gotten here seeing as it was flying in a straight line and didn't have to deal with running through snow and fighting Heartless, the entire way here. So where did it go? Ok, brain time to shut up and focus, you're missing parts of the conversation.'_

I blinked as the Emperor said "He didn't offer his name. He was rather rude."

Sora blinked before saying "Rude? … Then it WAS Riku!"

I snorted and glanced away, feigning innocence, as Sora looked behind himself to stare at me for a moment, ignoring the conversation between Goofy and Donald as Mulan asked "But why would he come here?" I shrugged but no one got a chance to answer anymore than that as the dragon Heartless made its presence known by making the entire palace shake. It was about time it got here. I sighed as I heard the screams echo from around the palace, various servants running into the Throne room to stare up at the calm Emperor who shooed them out. Mulan, in the meantime, had turned around saying "I'll check outside."

Twilight stepped up next to her saying quickly, "Not alone, you won't be."

The two girls smiled at each other and we all started to head out only to be stopped as Shang called out "Mulan!"

She turned around and ordered "Shang… guard the Emperor! I'll be fine…with them!"

Sora nodded trying to reassure the Captain "Th-that's right!"

The Emperor nodded folding his hands together saying calmly "Indeed. That is true: We need not worry while you protect us."

Donald getting impatient yelled at us "Hurry!" I tilted my head slightly as Mulan pushed the door open only to jump startled as the Heartless appeared before the door. Twilight was also startled and I winced as she yelped in my ear. I turned to stare at her pointing at the Heartless with a face that said 'you KNEW that was coming!'

She scratched the back of her head and gave a small laugh as she said quietly, the others running past us and into the courtyard, "I forgot." I chuckled and we joined them outside, my sword appearing in my hand. We were standing in the middle of the courtyard, watching it circle over head when it charged us, everyone dodging out of the way. I rolled and kneeled tracking the thing through narrowed eyes. I blinked as Sora ran past me only to be joined by Mulan, Goofy, and Donald as they jumped on top of it. Twilight and I watched as they attacked it from a top of its back, Twilight saying as she stared up at them "I'm surprised you're not up there with them."

I blinked, as it flipped over, saying "I'm not up there because it does that." The two of us split apart as it flew at us, my sword digging into its side as it passed me. I gasped as I saw that Sora was the only one left on it and was attacking the things spines as well as dodging the lightning blasts. The creature fed up twisted, making Sora fall to the ground next to me and I helped him stand up as I watched the Heartless, swoop to the our side of the courtyard. My eyes widened as I remembered this attack and ran to the side as it spun and charged all at the same time, Sora managing to land on top of it once again. I blinked as I saw Twilight's hand glow as she waved it, sending a spear of light at the Heartless as it flipped over again, Sora managing to hang on this time. I winced as the Heartless flipped erratically knocking Sora off of itself, dodging a lightning bolt that was forming, a random thought popping into my head, '_this would actually be pretty ironic if this was Larx's Heartless.' _My eyes narrowed as I saw it land at the entrance of the courtyard, running next to Twilight, and pushing her to the side as barriers formed on either side of us. Twilight stared at me in surprise as a barrier separated her from the rest of the party. I turned to the dragon Heartless in front of me, rolling out of the way as it sent a large beam of light down my way. I watched as the barriers vanished and the dragon took off heading over to the other side of the courtyard, its wings spread wide. I started running as everyone started to dodge the tracking orbs of light as well as the forming lightning bolts. As it started to drop the bombs, I stood next to Twilight as she put up a barrier, summoning darkness into my hand which I launched at the dragon. It jerked at the impact before sweeping low trying to attack everyone. I jumped, landing on its wing running before jumping back on the ground as it twisted higher into the air. It tried the same attack again but this time Sora got in front of it and knocked into the air, with multiple strong attacks, making it fall to the ground unconscious. As everyone saw that it was just laying there, we all renewed our attacks quickly before it woke up. It forced itself up into the air weakly and hovered there for a moment before falling. As we watched its trajectory we saw that it was going to fall on top of Mulan, who had been separated from the group during the battle.

My head whipped around as I heard Shang yell "Mulan!" The Heartless vanished in a flash of light before it had a chance to smush both Shang and Mulan into a gooey mess, the man having his arms wrapped around her protectively.

Sora pumped a fist as he saw that the two of them were alright, as I gave a sigh of relief, yelling "Way to go!" Shang helped Mulan up and the two of them smiled at each other holding hands. I smirked as the others watched them amused. The two of them looked over at us before looking at each other and let go of the others hands hastily laughing quietly embarrassed. My eye twitched slightly as I looked up before shaking my head and smiling as fireworks went off. Servants ran towards us and started to usher us back inside the palace and I raised an eyebrow at one who was bowing repeatedly to me, his hand on my arm.

I sighed shaking him off and gripping his shoulders and forcibly making him stand straight practically ordering the man "Don't. I'm not the kind of person that people bow to, plus all that bowing has got to hurt the back eventually." I heard Twilight laugh and saw her laughing at me. I stuck my tongue out at her before turning back to the servant at hand saying "Now what were you saying?"

My eye twitched as he bowed again saying "Your eminence…"

I cut him off and said "One: if you ever call me that again I will slug you into the next century, two: didn't I just tell you not to bow to me, and three: STOP GROVELLING!" I blinked as I saw that the others had gone on ahead and asked "Now, one more time, no groveling, no bowing, and absolutely no calling me by a title. What did you want?"

The servant blinked and gulped slightly before answering "Your… The Emperor has summoned you to the Throne room."

I grinned and patted his shoulder asking "See, now was that so hard?" With that said I turned and headed back into the palace, following the others into the Throne room.

I sighed as we climbed the stairs to stand before the Emperor; as soon as we were all up there he said "Once again, you have served China well. It would please me to reward you. What is it that you wish?" I laughed quietly as I heard Goofy's stomach rumble and began to plan out a late lunch when we got back onto the gummi ship.

Sora held a hand to his chin saying "Well…" He paused thinking it over before asking "You say a guy in black came to see you. What did he say?"

The Emperor blinked in surprise asking "That is all you request?"

Sora nodded and said "Yes" as I laughed at Donald's and Goofy's expressions as they slumped in disappointment.

The Emperor nodded and began "Dragons have crossed our land and left a great web of paths. These dragons wield much power, and they are the source of many gifts to both man and nature. But it would seem someone of evil intent disturbed one of our dragons, and transformed it into what you call a Heartless. It is my belief that this young man came to warn me of that danger. Then, I could alert and prepare my troops."

Sora tilted his head as he asked curiously "Did you?"

The Emperor chuckled and spread his hands explaining "I was about to, but he told me the situation had changed."

We all looked over at Shang as he elaborated "He said three 'wise guys' and a couple of girls had arrived, and they would take care of things."

Twilight and I snickered at his words and at Donald's expression as Sora said resolutely "That's gotta be Riku!"

I leaned forward slightly to look at Goofy as he asked "But what's he doin' hangin' out with Organization XIII?"

'_Did you NOT notice what Mickey was wearing, he was in the SAME THING!' _

Sora looked down with a small smile as he answered "No idea. But at least I finally know he's okay. That's good enough."

Donald nodded, as I straightened up, saying "Yeah, that's good."

We all turned back to the Emperor as he said "Now then, Fa Mulan. Do you have a request?"

She looked at the Emperor before asking timidly "I'd like Shang…I-I mean… well…The Captain…"

I resisted a smile that was threatening to spread across my face as the Emperor leaned forward asking eagerly, like a school-girl about to hear a juicy bit of gossip, "Yes, yes, my dear. What is it?"

Building up her courage Mulan asked "Could the Captain have a vacation, please?"

Said Captain looked surprised at her request and the Emperor answered amused "I hardly expected such humble requests." He stood up and walked forward slightly as he continued "In this case, I'm afraid I must refuse. Captain Li's responsibility is to protect the Emperor. And yet, Mulan…Would you like to serve alongside him and protect me?"

I laughed as the two of them stared at the Emperor's back, as he had turned around, and asked surprised and shocked "What?"

The Emperor did not turn around as he explained "Two reeds together are stronger than one. But the choice is yours alone."

He turned around as Mulan clasped her hands together bowing and saying gratefully "Thank you, your Excellency!" I looked over at Sora who gave a happy sigh before wiping his eyes. Seeing this I started laughing hysterically, clasping my hands to my mouth as I tried not to embarrass the boy anymore than Donald and Goofy were doing now. I glanced over at Twilight who was trying just as hard as I was to stifle her laughter but when we caught each other's eye, we lost it. Falling on the ground, leaning against each other, as we laughed hysterically the others looked over at us utterly confused. Donald sighed and started casting the spell that would send us back onto the gummi ship everyone saying their good-byes.

I stood up and waved to the two lovebirds saying "Take care of each other." Twilight waved and everyone vanished into a flash of light. Appearing in the gummi ship, I headed into the galley, as they launched the ship heading to our next destination, calling back to the others "What do you guys want for lunch?"


	28. A Dead Breeze

**Hello again, my favorite people. First off, Happy Canada Day to all of my lovely readers up North of the boarder. For my many more local readers Happy (upcoming) 4th of July. Many cheers to the lot of you. XD I got no threats for being slow, that makes me happy...might have something to do with the fact that I bribed you guys with three chapters instead of one. **

**Shout outs: kingdomdisney, KuroNeko513, twilight-yuna17, mauralucky7 (wish you hadn't been anonymous so I could answer your question because Sai is the nickname I gave Saix that's all), Flyteless Kitsune, kenegi, Kokiee, Kora Bloom, Flyteless Kitsune, supersam4ever08, Moonlitforest, BAYALE, DarkAkastukiNeko, JulietFloraWinters, WinxKHeartsPitchiMewSailorFan.**

**Disclaimer: I own anything you don't recognize and if you really think that I own KH enough to try and sue me, you either are delusional or have way too much time on your hands.**

* * *

**Chapter 28: A dead breeze**

The sun was setting in Hollow Bastion as we landed. Sora had insisted we come back after learning that Twilight had found the last set of pages. I had no idea when she had gotten them but she had. There was simply no talking the boy out of it so here we were, watching as Sora ran to Merlin's house. I sighed and shook my head, patting Twilight on the shoulder as I went my separate way, walking past Merlin's house going to the Bailey. My hands were shoved in my pockets as I walked, the Shadow Heartless avoiding me as I passed. Sitting down on the ledge that over looked the battlefield I leaned against the wall and allowed the silence to envelop me. As time crept by the shadows grew longer and I heard a warping sound from close by. I adjusted slightly, hearing my back give a series of cracks, looking over at the red head that appeared out of the darkness. I frowned slightly '_He always shows up, no matter where I am he always comes. That could be very dangerous if the Org. ever figures that out. They could use it against us.' _

Noticing my frown Axel asked "What?"

I blinked before shaking my head with a small smile saying "Nothing."

He raised an eyebrow before looking away saying "Still don't trust me yet do you?"

I gawped at him before saying "That's not…it… you were teasing me you jerk." I had noticed the grin that had spread across his face and stood up, walking over to him, and hitting his shoulder. He looked down at me in surprise as I 'glared' up at him saying "That wasn't funny, Axel."

He smirked saying "On the contrary it was very funny." I sighed, shaking my head with a smile before heading back over to the ledge and sitting down. The red head followed me asking "How long are you going to be here, anyways?"

I glanced up at the darkening sky before answering after a second "Hm… we'll probably stay for tonight and take off tomorrow morning."

He sat down on the edge his back facing the former battlefield as he watched me asking "Where are you headed next?"

I tapped a finger on my chin for a moment thinking before answering "If I remember correctly, which I probably am, we're going to Beast's castle next. Oh boy, that ought to be fun."

He smirked at the sarcasm that came out of my mouth, raising an eyebrow as he asked dryly "Why do I have a feeling that it won't be?"

I grinned and nodded explaining "We get to face the ever frustrating, Xaldin."

His eyes narrowed as he asked "Xaldin, huh? You want help?"

I waved him off saying "We'll be fine. Unless he pulls out something completely unexpected, I highly doubt it, we'll be able to handle it."

He frowned slightly before saying "This is Xaldin don't underestimate him."

I raised an eyebrow at him before agreeing "I don't underestimate him, believe me the guy killed me about 20 times. I'm just saying that between Twilight and I we have fought him more times than should be possible." He stared at me confused for a moment before his expression cleared with understanding. I smiled slightly before saying quietly "It's nice."

He looked up at me with a raised eyebrow asking "What?"

My smile widened slightly as I explained "Not having to hide what I know, all the time. Not having to act like I have no idea what's going on when I know more than most. Just being able to be me and not have to calculate the possibility that I might screw something up if I say or do something wrong. It's a… relief." Axel smiled and nodded before I looked back at the battlefield for a moment. Closing my eyes I relaxed before opening them again and looking out at the castle. I still had to hide some things but…not as many. My head snapped up and I looked over towards the entrance of the bailey having heard footsteps approaching. Waving to Axel, he got the message and portalled out of there quickly. I looked towards the entrance to see Cloud walking in and waved at the blond.

He blinked as he saw me sitting on the ledge walking over he said "So you all came out of the battle alright."

I nodded saying "Took a quick trip to another world before coming back here. So, what's up?" He shrugged, standing next to me with his arms crossed, silently. I looked up at him for a moment, tilting my head slightly as I watched him, I could tell something was troubling him. I don't know why but I had always been good at reading people like him, hell I could read Vincent Valentine pretty well when he was just a sprite with no facial expressions. He glanced down at me and raised one of his eyebrows slightly and I asked "You okay?" He blinked before looking away silently. I sighed slightly before turning to look back at the battlefield. If he wasn't going to tell me, he wasn't going to tell me. There was no reason to push.

I looked up at him in surprise as he said quietly "Maybe…Sephiroth is right. Maybe I am living in the past because the light of the present is too strong."

I blinked and tilted my head thinking, he glanced down at me before looking away as I sighed and answered "I think that, to some extent, everyone lives in the past. It's… more of a matter of if you can keep on moving and learning to deal with that past." I pushed myself off of the ledge and stood up saying "My personal philosophy about it is that, you can never let the past rule you. You have to turn and face it at some point. The past is something you can't run away from." I glanced over at Cloud as he watched me silently before I smirked saying "It's also my personal philosophy that shit happens and you deal with it as it comes. Ya learn to roll with the punches, eventually." He blinked and his mouth twitched slightly as I walked off with a slight wave heading down to Merlin's. '_It's also my personal philosophy that people in the end have to deal with their own problems. You'll be alright in the end, Cloud.'_

I blinked as I saw what looked like smoke coming out of the house and ran down the stairs, stopping a few feet away from it. Looking around I saw Leon standing by the alleyway that lead to the market and as I jogged over to him I asked "What's going on in there?"

Leon looked up, his eye twitching from annoyance as he answered "Yuffie was teaching Twilight how to make smoke bombs."

I cringed saying "Glad I wasn't there." The taller man nodded as I sat down on the ground next to him, looking up I asked "Is the place still habitable?"

Leon gave a small smile before answering "Well, everyone else is in there." I raised an eyebrow at him in surprise as he continued "Getting their heads chewed off by Cid but they _are_ in there."

I laughed outright at that before sighing and leaning back asking "It's always interesting when Twilight and Yuffie get together, isn't it?"

Leon glanced down at me before glancing at the house saying "You have no idea."

* * *

It was the next morning and as soon as Cid saw Twilight and Yuffie come downstairs he started chewing their heads off again. Annoyed, tired, and not a morning person I cut in saying "Cid! Go for a cig break or something but shut up already. It is too damn early for this shit."

Twilight blinked and said "Well, you're in a great mood this morning."

I glanced over at him as I propped my head on my fist saying "You forget that I'm not a morning person."

Twilight smiled saying "Nope. You are definitely a night owl."

I grinned as I said "College students, we are the original creatures of the night." Twilight laughed and sat down at the table for breakfast the boys joining us a short time later, morning chatter going around the table. It wasn't long before our group had to leave for the next world all of us waving goodbye.

Nine hours later we landed at Beast's Castle and I jumped out of the gummi ship, the boys running past me as I waited for Twilight as she jumped down. I smiled and the two of us took off after the boys, everyone eager to be out of the ship. As the boys pushed the door open we noticed that the Beast was pacing and…wearing a fancy suit. Sora waved at him saying "Hey there!"

I raised an eyebrow at Donald as he looked around saying "No Heartless and no Nobodies!"

'_For now anyways.' _

Goofy nodded but cautioned "I think they're close, though…"

Sora looked behind himself saying "Better watch out!"

I gave a wry smile as the Beast gave a sigh of frustration at the five of us showing up, Donald asking the much taller Beast "What are you so mad about?"

The Beast ignored the question and asked us "Why are you here?"

Sora waved a hand as he explained "The Nobodies' world has to be around out there somewhere. We're looking for a way in." The Beast "humped" as Belle walked down the staircase.

Spotting her he began to head up, pausing to glance back at us saying "Tonight is very important." Twilight waved up to the Princess of Heart and she grinned in response to the eagerly waving girl. Belle and Beast stopped in front of each other and bowed before heading into the ballroom.

I glanced over at Goofy as he said "Uh, maybe we came at a bad time."

'_Ya think?'_

I stared down at Donald as he said "Well, there's only one way to find out."

We all stared at the duck as he ran up the stairs, Sora yelling after him in disbelief "Donald!" As he didn't listen to Sora, we chased after him.

Entering the ball room quietly we just missed the last part of Lumiere's welcoming but he turned to us with a smile saying amused "And of course, our honored guests are welcome, too."

My smile vanished as Xaldin's voice came in saying "A welcome indeed."

Sora ran into the middle of the room and Twilight asked me quietly "Why didn't you sense him?"

I looked over at her, ignoring Sora's exclamation, saying "I think he was just lurking."

Twilight shuddered slightly muttering "That…is just creepy."

I snorted before turning my attention to Xaldy again as he said "You just don't know when to quit."

I rolled my eyes as I walked forward, Twilight and I joining the boys in the middle of the room, as Donald yelled up to Xaldin, as he was standing on the balcony, "Oh yeah! We'll show you!"

I turned to look back as I heard Beast yell "Get out!"

Blinking at Belle's hurt expression I smirked as it changed into one of fierce determination as she proclaimed "Not tonight!" Ah, a girl that took after my own heart, one that doesn't put up with people's shit. Xaldin held up a hand and snapped his fingers making his Dragoon Nobodies appear. Beast ran forward knocking the Nobodies out of the way, joining us as we stared up at Xaldy.

He held up a hand saying "I've come to take something that you hold dear."

I winced and jerked away slightly as Beast roared loudly '_yes, let us give into Xaldin's taunts. That's real smart. Break my eardrum while you're at it to, why don't you?' _

I could hear Xaldin's smugness as he said "Yes. Let your anger grow…" He portelled off, leaving the Dragoons and Dusks behind for us to play with. Real sweet of him, right?

My sword appeared in my hand as Sora said to Beast, not even looking back at him "Beast! We have to get rid of these guys first!" Sighing I brought my sword up and charged with the others, the staff hustling Belle out of the room.

As soon as the fight was finished Sora looked around and asked "Where's Belle?"

I looked over as I heard the door creak open and Belle call "Over here!"

Sora wiped his brow in relief and said "Whew, she's okay."

Goofy held up a finger saying "Guess Xaldin didn't take anything after all." Twilight and I glanced at each other for a moment before Beast's head jerked up.

Turning around he ran out of the Ballroom, leaving a confused Sora to call after him "What's wrong?" I blinked as I saw Belle run past me and I sighed as Sora asked "Belle? What's with them?"

Goofy glanced over at Sora saying "Maybe Belle isn't the only thing precious to the Beast." Both Twilight and I sighed before running out of the room, the boys following us quickly. It didn't take long for us to get to the Beast's room in the West Wing. I leaned against a wall with my arms crossed and watched the former prince pace in the room.

I winced slightly as he gave loud roar, causing Twilight to jump and Belle to ask in concern "What's wrong?" He growled angrily but didn't give an answer. Twilight moved next to me and sat down watching as the scene played out. I, on the other hand, zoned out because the next thing I knew Belle was apologizing.

Glancing up at me Twilight asked "Were you paying attention at all?"

I blinked before giving a sheepish smile saying "Nope! Not really." My partner in crime gave an exasperated sigh as she pushed herself up and whacked my upside the head.

I blinked in surprise before grinning and rubbing the spot that she had hit, I was rubbing off on her, as she shook a finger at me saying "You've got to start paying attention to what's going on around you more."

I raised an eyebrow with a smirk as I responded "And listen to his Lord Angst? I'd rather not, besides nothing'll happen just yet."

Twilight rolled her eyes as she countered "Nothing'll happen that we know of. That doesn't mean that it won't."

I blinked slowly before asking "Did we just switch brains or something?" Twilight blinked her vivid blue eyes before shrugging; the two of us stopped our discussion as Belle walked past us and out the door in a sullen mood. The two of us turned back to the others and watched Beast for a moment, a dark aura of gloom hanging over him. Shaking my head I left the room leaned against the railing overlooking the entrance, Twilight joining me.

I glanced at her, giving a tired sigh as I leaned forward turning my head to look at her as she said "Xaldin's next." It was a statement and we both heaved annoyed sighs. Neither of us had really enjoyed the fight against the Nobody in the game, we could just imagine just how bad it was going to be in real life.

Pushing myself up slightly I grinned saying "Well, maybe we can change things up a little bit. Make the Lancer have a taste of his own medicine this time." Twilight grinned; there were only three people, in this universe, that could thourghly piss Twilight off. Xaldin was one of them.

She glanced behind herself asking "How long do you think it'll take them to convince Beast?"

I shrugged commenting drily "Well at least it's going to be an easier time convincing Lord of Angst to come with us, Lord of the Boom would take forever…and he'd probably kill them." Twilight stared at me in confusion and I grimaced slightly as I said "Sorry, Gundam Wing reference there. Lord of the Boom is Heero's fanname." The confusion cleared up instantaneously and she nodded, while not a lover of the series she at least knew the character's names…though she did have some trouble remembering Waffle…I mean Wufei's sometimes. We both glanced back as we heard running footsteps and I glanced back to the entrance as a portal formed out of the darkness over the doorway, Xaldin standing there with the rose held in one arm.

Twilight and I watched as the others ran past us and Xaldin called down to them "So, Beast…you came after all. You had me worried. I was afraid you'd given up for good."

Both Twilight and I descended the stairs as Beast growled, Sora yelling up at the man "What do you guys really want?"

I sighed '_what do they all want Sora?' _

Xaldin gave a simple answer with a condescending tone "…Kingdom Hearts." Reaching up with one hand he pulled off his hood, revealing the dreds and the mullet chops as he gave a cocky, sadistic smirk as he said "When Kingdom Hearts is ours, we can exist fully and completely. So you see, Beast…that's why we need your Heartless AND your Nobody!" I sighed as a group of Nobodies appeared and my sword came out of the darkness as everyone brandished their own weapons. The fight was fast and somewhat boring actually but it was just a pre-fight to the main boss battle. I grabbed Twilight as she had a moment of insanity and tried to charge Xaldin as he floated down to the ground. He glanced back at us and gave a conceited "humph" and went through the door. The doors closing behind the man with a loud thud, I tilted my head for the first time really looking at the doors in their immensity.

I blinked before asking "Why do they keep making doors that big? They are completely impractical." Twilight rolled her eyes and shook her head before we followed the others out of the entrance way into the gardens muttering something about 'now not being the time'.

As they looked around, I crossed my arms and waited for Belle to yell, which didn't take long as she soon yelled "Look! It's the rose!" I sighed as everyone turned their attention onto the balcony where she was standing only to gasp as a gloved hand wrapped around her mouth, muffling her protests, as he jumped from the balcony to the roof heading onto the pathway leading to the forest where the gummi ship was parked. Beast slammed through the door leading to the path and we followed him quickly onto the pathway to see him standing there one arm wrapped around Belle's shoulder, the other holding up the rose.

We stopped about halfway down the Bridge cautious that Xaldin would do something idiotic if we got too close and Beast growled out "You! Get out of my castle, now!"

Xaldin smirked as he said "With pleasure, but I'd rather travel light…" He glanced at what he was holding in his arms before continuing with a sadistic smile "What shall I leave behind? Belle? Or the rose?"

The Beast growled angrily before yelling as he charged forward "Belle!" Twilight and I grinned as Belle slammed her elbow into the man's gut, grabbed the rose, and ran back towards the castle a huge grin on her face.

Twilight's grin spread as she quietly said "As satisfying as that is in the game, it's even more so in real life." I nodded silently and tapped my blade on my shoulder as I got ready for the impending fight as Xaldin recovered from his surprise, the blow not having really done much to him. Beast ran forward swiping at the man, who simply floated back landing on the ground by the gate with his arms spread. Landing on the ground lightly he gave a cruel smirk to us before swinging up his arms, wind swirling around creating tornados, lightning sparking in them, as they flowed around him. Dispersing, the tornados revealed the lances that Xaldin was so well known for, catching three of them the other three floating around him. The group dodging the lances that zoomed their way trying to impale anyone that wasn't paying attention. Twilight charged forward getting in a few good hits as I blocked a lance that was about to hit Sora from behind, only to duck as Twilight flew back and…up? I glanced back at Sora as he glanced between Xaldin and Twilight who was pinned to the wall above the castle entrance by three lances.

I clapped a hand on the boy's shoulder saying "I'll get her down" He nodded and dove back into the fight as I ran in the opposite direction, passing through the barrier, that apparently didn't extend high enough.

I looked up at Twilight and raised an eyebrow as she yelled at me "Get me DOWN!"

I knew it wasn't a good situation to make light of but I couldn't resist as I yelled back teasingly "How would you suggest I do that?" The only reply I got was her yelling back at me which I tuned out, looking around trying to figure how I would get her down without her breaking her legs. I glanced over my shoulder as a portal formed behind me and Demyx stepped through. I raised an eyebrow at the man asking "What are you doing here? Forget that, not a good time to show up Dem!"

Demyx opened his mouth to answer but stopped and gawped up at Twilight as he spotted the girl dangling from the lances, yelling up at her "How did you get up there?"

I rolled my eyes as she yelled back down at him "How do you think? I didn't steal these lances and pin myself to the wall ya'know!"

I patted the man's shoulder lightly saying "She's a little tense at the moment, I wouldn't take any offense to it." He nodded but we both jerked forward as we heard cloth tearing and Twilight falling as the lances retracted heading back to their owner. Demyx sprung forward running to catch his girlfriend, only to be flattened by her.

I jogged forward and leaned over the two of them, my hands on my knees, more amazed the she hadn't broken Demyx's spine with that fall, as Demyx slid out from beneath the girl saying hurriedly "Oh, oh, my gosh! I'm so sorry! Are you okay? I'm SORRY!"

Twilight sat up a hand to her head as she muttered "I'm okay…I still love you! Just like I love these, little birdies flying around my head…"

I rolled my eyes as she passed out falling back into Demyx's arms, the man looking up at me with a puppy dog look that caused me to blink in confusion before he yelled "Heal her!"

I gawped at him for a moment before exclaiming "I can't heal people! She's the healer! It's a light magic! She'd probably blow up if I tried!" He turned pale as I dug through my pockets searching for a high potion handing it to the worried man. He grabbed it as I turned my attention back to the battle, placing myself as a guard over the two of them as Demyx worked on Twilight's injuries, until I felt Xaldin starting to fade away. I sighed as I glanced down at Twilight as Demyx rested her head on his lap, before saying "You better get going. The others'll be here pretty soon and work on your timing." He nodded and gently lowered the girl onto the ground before portalling off with a worried glance back at the girl. I gave him a reassuring smile as he hesitated for a moment saying "I'll take care of her, don't worry."

He nodded and stepped into the darkness vanishing as the door from the Bridge opened up and I knelt next to her, glancing back at the others as they ran towards us and called over to Donald "Hey, we need your expertise here Don!" The duck huffed and waddled forward before he saw the girl on the ground and rushed forward to concentrate on healing the unconscious girl. As Donald finished with his healing I gave a sigh as she slept on the ground glancing back at the others questioningly. They nodded in understanding; we would be staying here until she woke up.

Watching as a couple of servants carted her off to the room where she would stay I glanced back at Beast and Belle as they danced to music that no one else could hear and gave a gentle smile before turning and following Twilight into the castle.


	29. Heroes, huh?

Hello, again people. I would've updated earlier but I blame Mass Effect which I've been playing practically non-stop for the past week or so.

Shout outs: Kora Bloom, mauralucky7, KuroNeko513, kingdomdisney, WinxKHeartsPitchiMewSailorFan, BAYALE, theawesomeness811, Flyteless Kitsune, meiriknight97, LoveAzure10, and RoxyPop813

Disclaimer: It is the same as the last oh...28 times.

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**Chapter 29: Heroes, huh?**

I woke up when I felt someone shake my shoulder and opened my eyes to see Twilight standing over me with a grin plastered on her face. I sat up from where I had rested my head on the table in her room, wincing as cracks filled the air from my stiff back and muttered "Morning."

She grinned as she replied cheerily "Good morning!"

Blinking I stared at her for a moment with a 'wtf' expression before asking "Okaaay….what has you so cheery this morning?"

Her grin widened but she shrugged all the same before saying "Come on. Let's leave the two love birds alone so that curse can be broken." I shook my head with a small smile, mentally betting every piece of munny I had, which was actually a lot, that Demyx had visited her last night, pushing myself away from the desk before following her out the door, meeting the boys at the gummi ship.

After a quick trip, after the trip between the Pride Lands and Hollow Bastion any trip was quick, of five hours we landed back in Hades territory, the Underworld. It was still as gloomy as ever and as we we're headed towards the light we paused seeing the Underdrome light up. Tilting his head Donald asked "What's that?"

Everyone jumped and spun around as Auron spoke up from behind us answering Donald's question "The Underdrome. Fiends of the Underworld once clashed there…battle after battle. But Zeus didn't like the senseless violence, so he locked the place up."

Sore tilted his head asking "How did it get UN-locked?"

I slapped a hand to my forehead at Sora's question as Auron said "Some fool must have broken the seal."

Sore shrugged, shaking his head muttering "What an idiot." Auron 'hmphed' in his all knowing way, walking away slowly pausing when Sora asked "Where are you going, Auron? We should catch up!"

Auron glanced over his shoulder saying "If you need something to do, go help your friends." Sora turned his head to the light and I watched as Auron slipped into the shadows pyreflies fluttering around him before he vanished. I blinked as I felt a hand on my shoulder and glanced at Twilight as she jerked her head towards the stairs where Sora and Herc were talking.

Walking up to them we stopped as a puff of smoke appeared right in front of us, splitting we moved around Hades ignoring him and the confused look he shot the two of us before composing himself as he turned to Herc saying "The Underdrome's back, and you are gonna fill the stands. After all, your fans won't settle for anything less than a certified hero." Putting an arm around the hero's shoulders Hades continued his torment "I mean, if you're not up to it, you could always just, I dunno, LOSE?"

Sora jumped forward yelling "I bet you'd like that!"

I blinked as Hades vanished and appeared a few feet away asking in a mocking hurt tone "Excuse me? Hey, I'm not a selfish guy. I'm not like those high and mighty snobs up on Olympus. I stand for the masses! And have I got a massive idea!"I rolled my eyes as the god spun around his arms spread, announcing with an echo even, "The games, ladies and gentlemen…are back! Yours truly, Hades, the one and only Lord of the Dead brings you the ultimate games, to celebrate the re-opening of the ultimate coliseum! We'll finally answer the age-old question:…"

I cut in quickly "Which came first the chicken or the egg?"

The god glanced back at me as I watched him amused, Twilight trying and failing to suppress her laughter, and he grinned saying "Nah, different question. Who deserves the title 'Ultimate Hero'? These games are gonna settle the debate once and for all! The winner reigns supreme. Of what? You guessed it! The Hades Cup! And I assure you that the 'Great' Hercules will be there. Otherwise… you'll never see your girlfriend again."

Sora growled yelling at the blue haired man as he vanished "Lowlife!"

As the smoke dispersed Hades voice was all that was left as it laughed and said "You're too kind, kid." Twilight shook her head as Pain and Panic walked up. We glanced at each other and let the boys sign up with Herc, the two of us refusing when we were asked if we wanted to sign up for the tournament. We would be content to just watch for now. Settling in the stands I put my feet up on the chair in front of me, slipped on my sunglasses and shut my eyes only to open them to kick the demon that had swiped at my feet knocking him on his ass. He jumped up and I glared at him over the dark glasses as he started yelling and brandishing the weapon that he was holding. Twilight glanced between the two of us, the demon yelling and I glaring death at him just daring him to pick a fight, and sighed as the demon threw a punch and set a barrier in front of me. The demon yelped and clutched his hand before growling and moving on to another set of stands away from the two of us.

Glancing over at me as I settled down again Twilight asked "Do you have to be so confrontational?"

I opened one eye and crossed my arms before answering with a smirk "Yeah. Tell me when the semi-finals start, will ya?" She nodded and I closed my eyes again, letting myself drift off for a little while.

* * *

"Ghost. The semi-finals are starting." I nodded and focused my attention on the scene before me, Sora and the gang were fighting a group of Heartless that called themselves "Bad Alert" . The only thing that was accurate about their name was the bad part, they were lousy fighters and easily beaten by the guys.

I glanced up at the board and stood up saying "You better stay here and keep an eye on things. I'm gonna head with the guys deeper into the Underworld."

She blinked before asking "You sure you don't want me to come?"

I shook my head with a small smile saying "Remember what happened last time? You could barely stand as we got further in and we're going all the way." She nodded and settled back into her seat as I left, catching up with the boys as Auron left them. Speeding up I jogged up to the boys and they glanced at me before running after Auron, heading further into the Underworld.

I blinked as Sora stopped and skidded to a halt as the brunette grabbed Donald and pulled him back as Hades said "Okay, let's review. State your crime, prisoner."

In a monotone voice, that was even unusual for the stoic Auron, he answered "I exist. That is my crime. It is…inexcusable."

I slapped a hand on Sora's mouth muffling his question as Hades said "Okay, so you made one lousy mistake: you exist. But hey, I'm a forgiving guy."

'_Bull shit. You may be my favorite Disney villain Hades but even I call bull shit on that one.'_

"You keep your end of our little deal, and I'm willing to overlook a transgression or two."

Auron nodded slightly as he said, once again in that creepy monotone voice, "I understand. Defeat Hercules."

Hades nodded before glancing back at the man in red saying "And his meddling friends."

Surprised Auron broke out of the monotone and said "What? No, only Hercules."

The god shook his head and leaned against Auron asking "Oh, don't tell me you've forgotten who's in charge?" Slamming a hand on the man's shoulder pyreflies swirled around Hades blue arm as a figurine appeared in his other hand, pyreflies also floating around the figurine as the Lord of the Dead reiterated "Hercules and the other five. Are we clear?"

My hand tightened into a fist as Auron responded sounding like he was in pain "We're clear, Hades."

Hades raised an eyebrow and said "Lord Hades."

Sounding like he really didn't want to Auron growled out "Lord Hades…"

The pyreflies vanished and Hades ordered "Good. Now go."

Sora and Donald ducked back behind the stone as Auron turned around, the god watching him as he left, looking at the figurine in Hades' hand Sora commented "So that's how he's controlling Auron!"

Donald looked up at the boy and stomped his foot exclaiming quietly "What a jerk!"

Goofy shook his head muttering "He'd probably think that was a compliment."

Sora's eyes narrowed as he said "I can't stand seeing Auron do that lowlife's bidding…We've got to help him!" They glanced at me as I watched Auron pass us and leave the cave my eyes narrowing as I watched the legendary guardian of Braska and Yuna, friend of Jecht, and mentor to Tidus. I glanced over at Sora and gave a resolute nod and Sora grinned before following the man out of the cave to see him getting onto a boat that led to the Underdrome.

Watching from the dock I glanced back as Herc asked "What's wrong, Sora?"

Sora jumped around, as I turned my attention on the boat in the distance, and exclaimed "Auron's in trouble! It's like Hades brainwashed him!"

Goofy nodded and added on "He's using some kind of statue."

Herc's eyes narrowed and he muttered "You know something? That sounds kinda familiar… hmm Hades may be using the statue to hold Auron's free will hostage."

Donald looked up at the hero and asked "What do we do?"

I rolled my eyes and turned around saying "The obvious, duh. Get back the statue."

Sora nodded saying "Right."

He ducked as Hades appeared next to him saying "Tell me you're not thinking of leaving. You've got a match coming up."

Herc crossed his arms trying to sound confident as he declared "I'll fight Auron in the final. One on one."

Hades stared at the hero momentarily before drawling "Oh, you will?"

I raised an eyebrow at the god as he turned around and ignored Herc and Sora as they conspired together before stepping back as Hades spun around saying "Congratulations! You got a deal."

Surprised Hercules gave an easy "Thanks."

Hades held up a finger stating "On one condition! The Keyblader, here, and his trusty friends, including the girls, have to meet the winner in one final clash, whaddya say?"

Herc rolled his eyes as he commented drily "That'll drive the crowd wild…"

Hades shrugged as he replied "It'd better. I promised the crowd the event of their afterlives."

I rolled my eyes as Hades and Herc got onto the boat and sailed off, Herc waving back to us and I looked over at Sora asking "Shall we go?" They nodded and we took off running through the Underworld.

Coming upon Hades' chamber quickly at the center of the realm of the dead we quickly entered it. Sora grabbed onto the doll and was shocked by the pyreflies that flowed through and I winced as Goofy grabbed onto the boy and Donald grabbed onto Goofy. I sighed and shrugged muttering "What the hell," and placed a hand on Goofy's shoulder gasping slightly and stiffening as I felt the energy course through me.

My eyes widened as voices flowed around one in particular a young Auron protested "It is not too late! Let us turn back! Yes, but I…I cannot accept it. Where is the sense in all this? But…there must be another way! Your deaths will mean nothing! You must live!"

I released my hold on Donald and shook my head as Sora muttered "I get it. This is what belongs in Auron's heart."

I glanced over at Goofy as he said "Gawrsh, he musta had a pretty rough life."

'_You have no idea Goofy, you have no idea and that was just the beginning.' _

Sora nodded solemnly before saying "Yeah…but in the end, that's really what made him stronger."

Donald nodded and declared "Let's give it back!" I sighed as Nobodies appeared around us and my sword flashed into my hand, diving into the fight before the boy's had even noticed the Dusks that had surrounded us.

I glanced over at the window as more popped up and blinked in surprise as Heartless attacked the white husks, Sora commenting "Not what I had in mind, but I'll take it!"

I rolled my eyes and started out of the chamber calling back to the boys "Less talking more going!" They nodded and took off after me as we left Hades' chamber and the green vortex of death behind heading for the docks that would take the boys to the arena.

As they got on the boat I portalled back to the stands and settled down next to Twilight, who jumped at my sudden appearance but sighed saying "I take it you got it back."

I nodded and glanced over at her responding easily, a smug smirk gracing my lips "Should be here any second now." She nodded and we both looked down at the two combatants as they fought. My eyes narrowed and I muttered "I wonder how this battle would turn out if Auron actually got serious."

Twilight's head whipped over to me as she asked "You mean he isn't being serious right now?"

I shook my head as I answered "Well, he might be serious but…he's not in his normal fighting stance so he's hindering himself. Auron is one person you can trust to overkill on fiends." I winced as what looked like a firework went off above Auron's head and the man relaxed, letting his sword down, Herc sighing in relief.

Straightening up Auron looked around slowly saying "Sora. Donald. Goofy."

I waved down to him calling "Don't forget about us!"

He gave a hint of a smile and nodded in our direction saying "Ghost. Twilight."

We grinned down at him before turning our attention on the Lord of the Dead as he turned bright red changing back to blue he stood up and ordered "Ugh, prisoner! What happened to our mutual agreement? I can give you a clean slate, but you gotta work with me."

Auron smirked for a brief second before calmly replying "Maybe you didn't hear me. This is my story, and you're not part of it." I looked over at the god who turned red and I winced as he exploded into flames vanishing and reappearing in the arena.

I sighed and glanced over at Twilight asking "Shall we help or do you wanna watch the show?"

She tapped her chin lightly her eyes upturned as she thought before grinning as she replied "Let's watch the show."

I shrugged and grinned saying "Alright." Settling back down on the chair I had been in I glanced around at the suddenly empty stands and muttered "Cowards."

Twilight grinned as she said "They just didn't want to get BBQd."

I cracked my neck, as Meg was dropped into the green vortex of death and Herc jumped after her, saying "But they're gonna miss a great show, oh well. Their loss and it's not like they can die again." Twilight chuckled as we turned our attention back to the arena below, the girl next to me holding up a hand and casting a barrier blocking the fireball that had gotten knocked our way. I propped my chin on my hand saying boredly "Looks like their having some trouble."

Twilight nodded slowly letting the barrier go as it looked like there were no longer going to be any fireballs headed our way saying "Well it is his Underworld."

I nodded as I said "True, very true."

I glanced back at the door as Herc's voice filled the stadium "I think a true hero should be able to help." Both Twilight and I grinned as we spotted Herc holding Meg, a bright glow around the man saying "I owe you one, Hades. I didn't hesitate to give my life for Meg's. And then, I remembered: a true hero is measured by the strength of his heart."

Pegasus landed next to the man I blinked glancing at Twilight asking "Then shouldn't Sora be a true hero? He did give his heart up to save Kairi, save the multi-verse, and countless other things that would be considered heroic."

Twilight nodded and muttered "They haven't been keeping a very watchful eye have they."

I shook my head with a mock frown on my face as I responded sadly "No they really haven't"

I grinned as Sora berated Herc lightly "Just no more crazy stunts."

Leaning down the taller man whispered something to Sora and both Twilight and I grinned saying in unison "People always do crazy things when they're in love." We laughed before heading down into the actual arena joining the boys as Meg flew off on Pegasus, ignoring the god as he yelled something or other about "happy endings".

Twilight, Auron, and I stood back letting Herc and the boys fight the god, the man glancing down at the two of us asking "Why aren't you fighting?"

I blinked slowly and Twilight looked up at him as she answered "We aren't going to be there all the time."

I nodded and continued explaining to the man, my eyes never leaving the battle in front of us "They need to be able to fight on their own."

Auron smirked slightly returning his attention to the battle as well saying "You two are unusual guardians." Twilight blinked rapidly in confusion and I just grinned. That was quite the compliment, coming from him.

We watched as Hades stumbled back falling into his own vortex of death and I rolled my eyes as we headed back to the entrance of the Underworld, Sora, Goofy, and Donald stopping next to us to talk to Auron Donald asking "What'cha gonna do now?"

I tilted my head slightly as Auron hesitated for a moment before answering "I lived my life defending others. But now…there's no one left to protect. Maybe…it's time I shaped my own story."

I grinned as Sora nodded saying "Yeah…you deserve it, Auron…after everything you've been through."

The older man chuckled turning to us saying "I suppose I should thank you."

I glanced over at Twilight as she giggled quietly as Sora pounded his chest saying proudly "Not at all."

Auron turned abruptly saying "Fine."

The boys slumping in disbelief Sora saying uncertainly "I mean, sure, you could thank us a little…"

I laughed at them, Auron glancing over his shoulder advising "You should say what you mean." Turning back around he hesitated contemplating what he was going to say before opening his mouth "I guess I could spare a few words. …Thanks for meddling." The boys slumped again and I continued laughing Twilight and I leaning on each other as the boys couldn't believe what it was they were hearing. Calming down I watched Auron as he wandered off before we headed up to the Coliseum.

I grinned as I looked up at the full moon before looking at Herc as he said "Thanks again, guys! You're the best."

I chuckled as Donald's reply was a terse "Excuse us for meddling…"

Meg bent down to Donald's height and teased the irate duck "Aw…sounds like somebody's feathers are a little ruffled. I'm kidding. Thank you, Sora, Donald, Goofy, Twilight, Ghost."

I winked at her as she smiled before looking up at Herc as he asked "So where you guys headed next?"

Sora blinked before saying "Aw, you know…You two lovebirds seem to be getting along just fine without us hanging around."

Twilight chuckled as they separated and glanced back at the other embarrassed before we all turned to Donald as he said "Yeah, we gotta go."

I shrugged saying "I got no objections to leaving."

Goofy nodded with a smile saying "Uh-huh, before we start meddlin'."

Sora gave a quiet laugh before agreeing "Right."

I blinked and looked over my shoulder as Phil yelled "Are you turkeys trying to put me out of a job? If you keep acing every challenge, Champ, who am I gonna train?"

Herc blinked before exclaiming "Aw, you can't abandon me now, Phil! I gotta be at the top of my game in case Hades shows up again."

I flinched as Donald yelled, running in front of Phil "Hey, are we true heroes yet?"

I chuckled as Sora joined the duck enthusiastically asking "Yeah! C'mon, Phil, how 'bout it?"

The satyr placed a hand on his chin murmuring "Lemme see now…Well, you're not wise enough, not quite…seasoned enough…"

Sora released his glare and stood up exclaiming "Okay, okay, we get the hint!"

Phil shrugged saying apologetically "Look, kid, it's not my call!" Donald slumped and both Twilight and I turned our eyes to the sky ignoring the rest of their conversation, just waiting for the show to start. Once it did both Twilight and I looked at each other bemused, there were the expected three up there but there were another two.

I tilted my head recognizing our forms in the stars and muttered "That was unexpected." Twilight grabbed onto my arm squealing happily, nearly knocking me over as she pulled so hard making mutter "As was that." I glanced over at the boys as they jumped up and down happily seeing their images form in the stars. Saying our good-byes to the three, especially the dumbstruck Phil, that were present we headed off, Donald activating the magic that would transport us to the gummi ship. As I settled in my seat I asked "Where are we headed?"

Sora glanced back at us saying "Well we're gonna make a stop in Hollow Bastion really quick for supplies and just to see how everyone else is doing before heading back to Atlantica."

I nodded muttering as I stretched out, relaxing in my chair, "Cool." Sora put the ship on auto-pilot so he could get some sleep as well, leaving only one person up to make sure nothing out of the ordinary happened.

* * *

It was near morning and we were only a few hours away from Hollow Bastion when my shift came up and I moved into the kitchen to locate a source of caffeine. Coming back pop clutched in hand I sat down in Donald's normal seat and scanned the controls checking to see if there was anything abnormal, which there wasn't. I sighed and settled back waiting to land, content in the quiet with only the breathing, and in some cases snoring, of my companions nearby.

Heading towards Merlin's house, I slung an arm over Twilight's shoulder as we laughed and walked. We had almost made it there when I froze having sensed a portal forming above us. Twilight blinked and stopped, the boys noticing as well as I directed my attention to the roof of a nearby building. My eyes narrowed as I recognized the cocky stance and posture. His deep oily voice came out from beneath the hood "My, my you seem to be enjoying yourselves."

I stared up at him silently as Sora got in a defensive position yelling "What do you want?"

The hooded man glanced at the boy saying "Nothing to do with you at the moment, Keywielder. I have a proposition to make…to the User of Darkness." My eyebrow's clicked together almost audibly as I stared up at him, Twilight's glare remaining steady at the man.

I jerked my chin up defiantly calling up to him "What do you want?"

He extended a hand saying "Join me and have all your dreams come true."

I snorted turning around and starting to walk away I called back to him curtly "Not interested."

"Not even if that mean saving the one you hold closest to your heart." I froze where I was and stared at the wall before me as he continued "Join me and you could have all you wanted. Infinite power would be within your grasp. The power to protect those you hold dearest to yourself. Join me and I can grant you that power, all you have to do is kill the User of Light and the Keyblade wielder."(A/N my god he sounds like Darth Vadar) My hands clenched together and Twilight moved in front of me, trying to catch my eye. Staring at me she wasn't able to read anything within stony expression.

My eyes flicked up to her for just a brief second and darkness gathered into my hand, her eyes widened and she backed up murmuring "And darkness will be tempted" I swung my hand up and she put her hands in front of her face.

There was an explosion and Twilight opened her eyes to see my back facing her and the place where the hooded man had stood crumbling and smoking as I yelled "Yeah, protect those I hold close by attacking those I hold close! Did you really think that would work? Xemnas!" Twilight grinned in relief as my eyes narrowed flicking over to her for a moment. My eyes widened and I jumped forward knocking her out of the way as portal formed to her left and I felt a sharp blow, something warm and sticky running down my neck. Then nothing but darkness.


	30. Reunion No Not That Kind

Hello, again. Sorry about the wait (and on a cliff-hanger as well), this chapter had to go through a small re-writing that sort of went on hold as I played Dragon Age: Origins.

Shout outs: Mad Matt15, kenegi, kingdomdisney, Kora Bloom, KuroNeko513, Tempest NightMoon, BAYALE, HeartlessVampireGirl, RoxyPop813, LoveAzure10, Crystalline Ice, xinatra, rumxtapioka, Axel's Angel, Vanessa Rowes, ZodiarkSavior, Unknown, ForeverInsignificant, and anayu123.

* * *

**Chapter 30: Reunion…no not that kind**

I groaned as I opened my eyes, wincing at the infernal light that pierced painfully into my blue eyes. Blinking the spots out of my vision all I tried to figure out was where I was but all I could see was white, white walls, white floor, white ceiling, white door, white…manacles? Tugging at my wrists I looked up at the chains that were attached to the ceiling that kept my arms up and me standing. I was in the middle of the room with a serious headache and a case of nausea that was driving me insane. _'Ugh…concussion…gotta be.'_ I shivered slightly as a breeze blew down my neck and my eyes narrowed as I sent out my senses trying to get a feel of the place that I had ended up in. Darkness was close, closer then I had ever felt it other than passing through a portal. I glanced around my cell, as it was the only thing I could think of to call it, looking for anything useful. '_How much bleach did they use to keep it this white? They could kill a small army with the sheer whiteness of this place. Someone really needs an interior decorator.' _I glanced down at my feet which weren't bound to anything and finally saw color, the dark stain of dried blood, my blood. I looked up with a defiant glare as the door opened and Sai walked in. My jaw tightened as the blue haired man stepped to the side and my eyes flickered to the broad shouldered man standing in the doorway and for the first time in the year since I had met Twilight I found a good reason to level a death glare at someone. This particular glare was patented and well known to those who would be on the receiving end of my boot up their ass. Xemnas ignored the glare, his silver hair glinting in the light, the black cloak a stark contrast to the white that surrounded him.

He gave an emotionless smile to me saying "Welcome to our humble abode." I snorted; there was nothing humble about a massive white castle near the border of darkness that you couldn't get up to unless you climbed an invisible set of stairs. My glare hardened as he reached forward and stroked my cheek saying "Such a shame you didn't join our cause voluntarily, I suppose your Nobody would do just as well though." My hands clenched together and I jerked my head away from his touch. He responded by grabbing my chin forcing me to stare into his cold gold eyes as he said "Your heart will greatly benefit Kingdom Hearts and you are the perfect bait for that traitor Axel. Corrupting Darkness itself…the benefits that I would reap."

"Go to hell." Gripping the chains in my hands I pulled myself up, swinging back and slamming both feet into the Organization's chest sending him careening into the wall behind him. He lifted his eyes to mine before straightening up and brushing off his cloak as Saix grabbed me by the hair pulling my head back roughly, making tears form at the corner of my eyes but the glare never left. Xemnas shook his head and Saix released me and I straightened only to have my head snap to one side as Xemnas' fist connected with it. I looked at the ground for a moment feeling the blood running down my chin, licking some up I responded by spitting in Xemnas' face. Blood and spit running down the man's face as I stared at him defiantly. He rubbed his cheek, brushing away the mixture of blood and spittle, glancing at his gloved hand for a mere moment before pulling his hand back all the way hitting me in the gut full force. The only thing that kept me from slamming into the wall were the chains, the force of the blow dislocating one, if not both, of my shoulders.

Xemnas gave a cruel smile as he said "I will make your death, long and slow."

Those outside the door could only hear the sound of fists slamming into what sounded like a bag of meat, the occasional scream flitting through the silent hallways.

* * *

I opened my eyes once again, this time the walls were no longer a sterile white but were splattered with blood. I was barely conscious and wasn't able to keep focus for very long. My broken ribs protested as I moved, using all of my feeble concentration to focus the darkness on the manacles that were wrapped around my mangled wrists. Two small portals formed around the chains allowing my hands to slip through and I fell to the ground, no strength left at the moment. I was bloody, bruised, and broken but more importantly I was alive. Xemnas had had the sense to at least stop the bleeding from the wound that he had caused on my neck, far too close to my jugular for anyone's liking, especially if he wanted to continue with his fun. I reached up and touched lightly, wincing at the pain of moving and then the wound being messed with. That particular wound went from the left side of my neck and then traveled down the length of my spine. My nose was broken, one eye swollen shut, and I maybe had one unbroken rib left and it was hard to breathe, my legs weren't broken which was probably the only things that weren't. My right shoulder was dislocated and tensing up, my left one I could barely move, both wrists had deep lacerations from the manacles that had held me in place blow after blow. At least I had my father's skull and it was thick, I had broken Xemnas's fist when he had tried to hit me in the back of the head and all I had gotten was an increase in the headache from the blow I had receive from Saix. Either that or I was in enough pain already that I could just not feel it anymore. Forcing myself up I somehow was able to maneuver myself until my back was up against one of the now dirty walls. Letting out a sigh of relief I closed my eyes, pushing back the pain as much as I could, tears still forming at the corners of my eyes. My eyes snapped open and I looked at the door as it slid open to reveal a figure standing there. It wasn't Saix or Xemnas both of them were to large in one way or another to be the cloaked man before me. The man stepped fully into the room and scratched his head his hidden eyes landing on me as he said "Sheesh, you are one tough chick, you know that babe. Not many can say that they were conscious enough, let alone strong enough to break out of those chains. Not after nearly six hours of dealin' with those two."

I forced my eyes to stay open as I questioned quietly "Xiggy?"

The surfer sniper pulled off his hood with a grin saying "The one and only babe. As if, anyone else would come here to save you." I blinked in surprise as he walked towards me and knelt down, casting a cure spell over my eye and nose healing those at least. Slipping his arm gently beneath my legs he wrapped the other one around my shoulders before gently lifting me. I gasped in pain and turned my head burying it into his chest, my jaw clenching as I bit back a scream. He glanced down at me concern and pity tingeing his one visible eye as he muttered "Sorry 'bout this babe, but we gotta move quickly."

I gulped quietly, nodding before I asked "Why?"

Xigbar glanced down at me before summoning a portal with a small smile as he said "Let's just say, it's 'cause you helped out a couple of friends of mine. Plus the Org. it ain't what it used to be when it started out. Me and Axel have been workin' to shake things up a little. This place needs a bit more fun and excitement." I shook my head groggily, gasping again when he adjusted his hold on me so that my head was leaning against his shoulder instead of his chest. Despite being as skinny as he was, he was surprisingly strong and even more so, surprisingly gentle as he carried my broken body through the portal.

I glanced up as fog swam on my vision before kissing his scarred cheek lightly a small flash of light popping between us the one eyed man staring at me in confusion as I said "Thanks, Xig." With that said darkness welcomed me back into its gentle embrace.

'_Waves? Where…where am I?' _ I opened my eyes slowly halfway expecting to see a white ceiling fear flooding my system for a brief moment, as I was laying down, but stared up at the wood hearing the gentle creak that was associated with ships. I blinked slowly, turning my head slowly, and my eyes widened in surprise as I saw a red head with spikes. His head pillowed by his arms, asleep but the worry still having not left his face despite the fact that he was resting. The door creaked open and I looked up at the familiar dreadlocked Captain greeting him with a small smile as he waved a hand at me.

Strutting his way towards me he stopped next to the bed saying "The fella refused to leave, Anna-Maria had to threaten to turn him into a eunuch so she could take care of those wounds. What in the bloody hell happened?"

I gave a pained smirk as I replied quietly "Remind me not to piss off the leader of an evil organization again."

Jack raised an eyebrow but nodded saying "I'll do that, if the occasion ever calls for it."

I grinned as I said "You know us honest ones, we tend to do things that are incredibly stupid." Jack blinked in surprise but grinned none the less.

Tilting his head he asked curiously "Would you mind tellin' me who this chap is Fire Sprite and why I shouldn't kick him off me ship?"

I raised an eyebrow as I responded in an imitation of his own accent, "Best not be doin' that mate, you might just find yourself on some small bit of godforsaken land and watchin' your ship sail away…again."

Jack opened his mouth and raised a finger as I winked at him teasingly and he smirked saying "Point taken."

I looked back over at the slumbering Axel before asking "How long was I out?"

Jack settled down in a nearby chair explaining "You were out when he came aboard, quite unexpectedly too. Pintel and Ragetti claim he's some sort of demon. That would've been 'bout six hours ago. I'm surprise to see ya up as soon as ye be."

I winked saying "I got a thick head, it helps sometimes." Jack smiled as I returned my stare back up to the ceiling. I looked down at what I was wearing and sighed as I saw that I was back in the outfit that I normally had when I visited this world minus my boots, belts, and jacket.

Both Jack and I looked over at the door as it opened gently and a woman walked in ordering "Alright, Jack you and Red get out I need ta change her bandages again."

Jack smirked as he teased "Aw, I can't watch."

Before Anna-Maria could react I called quietly over to her asking "Hey, could you do me a favor and slap him." The woman grinned and smacked Jack across the face loud enough to wake Axel up and he turned his attention over to the two pirates as Anna-Maria smirked at the man.

I rolled my eyes at the two of them as she ordered "Red, out I need to change your girlfriend's bandages."

Axel opened his mouth muttering "But…"

The woman rolled her eyes exasperated saying "She can't go nowhere, now get out!" The two men nodded and left the cabin as soon as the door closed I cackled quietly wincing as my ribs protested the treatment. Anna-Maria walked over to me the bowl filled with water in one hand, bandages held under her arm. Setting them down she helped me sit up with me wincing the entire time. I glanced over at her as she said "I'm Anna-Maria."

I gave a pained smirk as I responded "Ghost." Anna-Maria smirked as she pulled my shirt off and removed the bandages from around my neck and back. Taking a cloth she wetted it and cleaned the scabbing wound once again before wrapping them in clean bandages before also re-wrapping my ribs. I rolled my shoulders hissing slightly at the result but happy they were back in place. I adjusted my position as she put my shirt back on, I was too tired to be embarrassed at the moment, and she moved to my wrists. I moved back so I was leaning against the headboard and could relax there. Anna-Maria just adjusted her chair and kept working on my wrists, looking down at them I could tell that they would scar as well.

Anna-Maria glanced up from her work momentarily to peer at my face as I stared at my wrists before saying "Ye'll scar on the wrists, neck, and back. There's nothin' I can do 'bout that."

I shrugged wincing at the action responding quietly "Just means that I've got souvenirs to remember this by." Anna-Maria raised an eyebrow at me before rolling her eyes and concentrating on her work. Once done she picked up the bowl of the now tinted red water and what was left of the bandages, heading out the door letting Axel, who had been pacing anxiously and getting weird looks from the crew, back into the room. He blinked as he saw me sitting up and gave a relieved sigh and a small smile as the door closed behind him. I gave a small grin saying "Hey." He walked over to me an unreadable expression on his face. Sitting on the edge of the bed he reached and cupped my cheek gently.

I smiled and rested my head in his hand before blinking in surprise as he gently wrapped his arms around me whispering into my ear "I thought I lost you. I got an ultimatum from Saix and I almost went before Xigbar stopped me." I blinked and a gentle smile formed on my face as I leaned my head against his, his red hair brushing my skin as I wrapped my arms around him as well. We stayed that way for a few moments before Axel pulled away slightly his green eyes observing me worriedly. I shook my head and adjusted so I was leaning against the wall and patted the bed next to me, inviting him to sit down instead of practically falling off of it. He sat next to me, wrapping one arm around my waist and I leaned my head against his shoulder. The two of us just sitting there in silence; enjoying each other's company, something we typically weren't able to do, with me taking comfort in someone as I tried to keep my emotions from over running me.

We blinked as the door opened Jack coming in saying "Well, I've come to inform ye two lovebirds we're makin' a stop in Tortuga tomorrow. Fire Sprite, it'd be best if ye didn' come to shore with us." I rolled my eyes, refusing to move from where I was and Jack settled at his desk as I went to sleep, leaning against Axel, who refused to leave.

* * *

Waking up to black lining my vision was nothing new but the not turning impossibly bright red was. I guess I was getting used to it, who knew what that meant. I blinked slowly as I gave a content sigh, Axel glancing down at me with a small smile. I frowned slightly when I didn't hear a heartbeat but let it go as I looked up at Axel with a small smile as he grinned down at me. Tilting my head to the side towards the wall I rolled my eyes as I heard the familiar arguing of Ragetti and Pintel. Sitting up a little more, wincing slightly as I did so, I straightened my back with a series of cracks. Axel winced at the sound but shook his head in amusement as I grinned back at him. I winced as my ribs protested but not nearly as much as they had before and my shoulders were way better then they had been. I glanced over at the desk where Jack had fallen asleep and gave an amused grin as he jerked awake and the first thing he did was check the rum. Shaking the empty bottle he muttered "Why is the rum always gone?" Standing up he stumbled slightly realization entering into his eyes as he said "Oh. That's why."I chuckled, shaking my head, _'lush'_ as he stumbled out the door to get more rum from below and I sighed before resting my head on Axel's chest with a tired sigh. He turned a slight shade of pink before raising an eyebrow at me.

I pulled back and shook my head with a sigh saying "I'm bored."

Axel barked out a laugh saying "You've been awake for less than five minutes and already you're bored?" I grinned up at him and nodded. I blinked as he closed the distance between us only to grimace as the door opened and Jack stumbled back in an already half-empty bottle of rum in hand.

I rolled my eyes and asked "Mind helping me get outside? I can't stay cooped up here for very long." Axel opened his mouth to protest but let out a sigh instead, knowing that he would have to pick and choose his battles, and nodded helping me stand and head outside where I went up the stairs and settled down by the wheel where Anna-Maria was. She glanced back at me but caught the stubborn set of my jaw and let it go as she concentrated on their course to Tortuga.

The sun was setting when we landed in that festering, dirty, hell-hole, pirate infested, rotten town that was called Tortuga. Looking over it I grinned and said "This place is so cool."

Axel glanced down at me with a raised eyebrow while Jack came up behind us saying "Well what do you think? Let me tell ya mates, if every town was like this no man would feel unwanted."

I shook my head with a small smile and glanced back at the pirate captain asking "Really? How many girls have slapped you because you felt _unwanted_?"

Jack held up a finger and opened his mouth to say something before closing it with a shrug finally saying "I haven't counted." Axel smirked as I laughed, holding my ribs from the pain, Jack watching the two of us for a moment before saying "Guard the ship well." I grinned and nodded to him turning my attention back to the town in front of me, yells and gun shots ringing out from it as Jack walked down the gangplank. Axel glanced down at me as I winced, ribs protesting as I twisted, cracking my back, looking up at the red head I raised an eyebrow at him noting the worry in his expression.

"Are you alright?" I blinked up at him and gave him a small reassuring smile, though it didn't reach my eyes.

"I'm fine." Axel's frown hardened slightly as I turned back to watching Tortuga. I jolted in surprise as he gripped my shoulder and gently forced me to face him.

"No. You are not fine. No one comes out of what you went through and is fine." He stared down at me his eyes pleading, his voice begging, "Please, don't lie to me about this. You don't have to handle everything on your own. Trust me, _please_. Let me be your strength. Let me take some of the burden." I stared up at him for a moment feeling the heat that was building behind my eyes. I had gotten so good at hiding, so good at compartmentalizing all of my problems that no one noticed when I wasn't alright.

This was the first time someone had called my bluff.

I sank to my knees, Axel's arms around me flooding the area with warmth as I let everything out. The sobs were quiet but the tears were many and they soaked his front as I held him tight as though he were the only thing keeping me together. Perhaps he was at that moment. I had faced one of my worst fears. The utter helplessness that I had felt was something I never wanted to experience again. I could build a façade, I could bluff and bullshit with the best of them.

There was only so long that that would work.

I don't know how long we were there with me clinging to him but eventually I calmed down. Axel had simply held me the entire time, rubbing soothing circles on my back, letting me get everything out of my system. At least as much as what was left of my pride would allow, with as many barriers that I had let down around him I was surprised I still cared about appearances. Perhaps it was simply an old habit that I was never going to get rid of. I had always been the strong one, the one that people would turn to for help. It was a first for me to have someone to turn to in turn. I sniffled and let go with one of my arms rubbing at my eyes to dry them. Axel muttering quiet reassuring words.

"We have rum!" Mr. Gibbs came on board yelling triumphantly, startling the two of us. I rolled my eyes with an amused grin and shook my head slowly as Axel gave an annoyed sigh before helping me to my feet, holding me to his side. I looked up at him quietly and rested the back of my head against his chest as Jack came back on board. Not sure I was used to Axel being this touchy-feely but I certainly wasn't going to complain at the moment, I had needed the contact. It had helped bring me back together at least a little, bringing back at least some of my normal attitude.

Raising an eyebrow I asked "Gibbs is the only one who came back?"

Jack shrugged as he explained, carefully avoiding the topic of my reddened eyes, "The rest went with Anna-Maria on her new boat."

I nodded as understanding passed over my face before confusion set in as Jack said "Hope you didn't hurt yourself to much Fire Sprite while you were playing."

I plastered a sweet smile onto my face and walked over to Jack saying "Jack, Jack, Jack. When are you going to learn?" He blinked confused slightly before his head snapped to the side as I slapped him, wincing as it probably hurt me more than it did him, continuing "Learn not to piss off a woman; we always get back at people."

Jack rubbed his cheek saying "I'll remember that." I smirked and headed back into the cabin, a wave of exhaustion rolling over me.

I winced as Jack pulled open the shudders letting the morning light into the cabin so he could work on his charts, his compass open on the desk before him as I lay in Axel's arms. I groaned and closed my eyes again burrowing my face back into the red head's chest, trying to avoid the morning light. Axel chuckled quietly and his arms tightened around me for a brief moment my ribs protesting ever so slightly. I was almost close enough to fit that I could fight, it would hurt but I could defend myself if it came to be necessary, though all those Cure spells that Anna-Maria had put on me before she had left had taken its toll I had been sleeping for almost 12 hours a day. The only thing that was having trouble healing were my ribs, the wound that extended from my neck and down my back was still in between scabbing and scarring though there were some parts that showed the healthy pink skin underneath the bandages. We just laid where we were for the moment before I called over to the Captain "Where are we headed Captain?"

Jack smirked as he replied easily "Port Royal, there's something I need to take care over there. We should reach our destination in about 5 hours." I nodded as Jack headed to the helm and sat up Axel refusing to let go.

Looking down at him I said "If he's headed to Port Royal we'll most likely be meeting Sora and the others there." Axel grimaced and sat up as well with a sigh, releasing his hold on me as I got up stretching my arms above my head. Glancing back at the red head with an easy smile I said "Looks like I'm pretty much back up to shape." Axel gave me an incredulous look before poking my ribs with a finger. My eye twitched and I slapped his hand away saying "Don't do that. I said pretty much not completely."

Axel smirked and put his feet on the ground pushing himself up off the bed as well asking worriedly, "Are you going to be alright?" I nodded at him with a smile. Noting his hesitation, my eyes twinkled with amusement.

"I mean it. I'll be alright."

Axel didn't look entirely convinced but gave in saying "I'll head out then. See you later tonight, hopefully. Be careful." I smiled and nodded as he portalled off, vanishing into the corridors of darkness. Taking a breath I looked into the mirror at my now slightly crooked nose, a fighter's scar on my brow, and fading bruises. I was a mess. Bandages were still wrapped around my neck and torso, slipping my sunglasses onto my face I walked on deck, heading up to the helm where Jack was.

Sitting on the railing facing Jack the man glanced at me asking "Where's Red? The boy's practically attached to your hip."

I chuckled saying "He left. Listen about Red…would you not tell the others about him?"

Jack blinked and stared at me for a moment before asking "Why?"

I sighed and frowned saying, scratching the back of my head, "Well, you see…" I hesitated trying to find the words.

Jack blinked as if understanding and he said "The others don't know, do they? Alright, I'll keep Red under the table, but I got something to hold over ye now Fire Sprite."

I grinned saying "You're welcome to try and find out something that you could use it on."

I glanced back at him as he said "Believe me though it's romantic. Anyone could tell with the way he was lookin' at ya." I turned around, ducking my head so he wouldn't see the blush, and headed up to the Crows Nest, though it took a lot longer and was much more of a pain in the ass to get to but it was the place on ship I had claimed as mine.

* * *

Night had fallen and I overlooked the town of Port Royal, lights twinkling in the distance. I blinked slowly and glanced down as Jack headed out to the town, smirking I followed him at a distance watching as he was attacked at the docks of the town. Wrapping the shadows around me I leaned against the wall and watched as he was attacked by a group of undead pirates, a slight smirk forming on my face as he yelled at the Sora and the others as they came down from the Ramparts "Zola! Some assistance!"

I glanced over at Sora as he rolled his eyes annoyed saying "That's SORA, Donald, Goofy, and Twilight!"

Jack gave an exasperated sigh, raising a hand up to the air calling back pleadingly to them "Will ye leave a mate to perish?"

The darkness fell from around me as I called over "Probably not, but it'd be funny if they did." Twilight and the boys stared at me for a moment before I yelled over to them "Save Jack, reunion later." Sora saluted with a grin jumping in to save the man. I leaned against the wall and watched the fight. As it ended I walked over to them, yelping in pain as Twilight threw her arms around me and hugged the living daylights out of me squealing something or other. Pushing her away gently I smirked saying "I take it you missed me."

Twilight punched my shoulder making wince in pain as she said "You jerk! Don't ever do something like that again."

I tilted my head slightly before giving a gentle smile before it turned into a smirk saying "I certainly hope I don't do that again. It's no fun dealing with a pissed off Xemmy." Twilight blinked and I grunted as the boys wrapped me in a group hug making me yell out "I may be alive, that doesn't mean I'm fully recovered." They let go as if I were a hot ember and I rubbed my bruised ribs, the others finally taking note of the bandages that were wrapped around my neck as I muttered "Stupid broken ribs, heal faster!"

Twilight shook her head with an amused smile as I turned around to the boys as they asked "How'd you escape?"

I winked and held up a finger saying "I have my ways." Shaking my head at their confused looks I turned to Jack saying "Those were cursed Pirates…"

Sora nodded in agreement, having been pushed back on track, saying "I'd thought we'd seen the last of the curse of the Aztec gold…what gives?"

Jack shrugged waving a hand as he said "Some scallywag must've got greedy. Oh, I see…you don't trust me, do you?"

Everyone else nodded and he glanced over at me and I shrugged saying "You're a pirate, tis a natural reaction not to trust a pirate."

Jack grinned as he replied "Likely a wise choice mates."

We all glanced behind ourselves as Elizabeth ran up calling "Jack! Sora!" I reached out and grabbed the back of Jack's shirt as he tries to sneak away, Twilight helping me to hold him in place as Elizabeth exclaimed "Wait, Jack! The cursed pirates have returned. Will had to find out why, so he went to Isla de Muerta…to check on the Aztec treasure. I fear something's happened. You have to take me to him."

Jack sighed, turning around as both Twilight and I released our holds on him, saying "Aye, there it is. If you'll be wanting him rescued, best do it alone, lass."

Elizabeth blinked in surprise asking in mock hurt "Alone? Really, Jack? Sail to the island and take on the cursed pirates?"

Jack shrugged gesturing at the woman muttering "Well, if any lass could…"

Sora ignored the pirate asking "Are you sure he's in trouble?"

Elizabeth shook her head answering slowly "No. Not certain. But he's been gone too long. I wanted to go with him, but he insisted I stay here. I can't just sit and wait! I've got to know if he's all right."

I rolled my eyes as Jack muttered "Lucky man…both him and Red."

He turned his attention to the woman in the long dress as she pleaded "Please, Jack! Take me to him!"

Jack held up a hand saying "Hold a moment. I see no profit in it for me."

Elizabeth nodded as she said "I shall reward you. Of course…you do owe Will. He has saved your life before."

He held up a hand and opened his mouth to protest but paused before giving in saying "Right. Shall we?" I listened quietly as Twilight told me what they had been doing in Atlantica while I had been away, made me sort of glad I missed it actually.

As we were headed up the gangplank I paused as she asked "What happened to you?"

I blinked and glanced back at her, a stony expression on my face as I shook my head saying "Don't want ta talk about it." She blinked in surprise but nodded in understanding as we boarded the ship, Jack leaving the Harbor as soon as the gangplank was up.


	31. BlackJack

Sorry for the delay my people, school started recently and it's been busy.

Shout outs: Kora Bloom, BAYALE, KuroNeko513, kenegi, kingdomdisney, anayu123, mauralucky7, Moonlitforest, UnluckyStar112, simplemindcrazyheart, LoveAzure10, KhAndTwilightFan15, sora0995, ZexyISSexy, FireWolfHeart, and Mad Matt15.

Disclaimer: As always I don't own anything other than Ghost and Twilight.

* * *

**Chapter 31: Blackjack**

We had been sailing for some time on the Black Pearl when I looked down to see Goofy leaning over the side of the ship yelling "Interceptor, off the starboard bow!" I watched as the others ran over to the indicated side of the ship, while I was resting with my back against the cabin wall. Twilight settled down next to me as they hustled Will off of the broken ship and rushed him into the cabin leaving the deck empty but for the two of us.

I closed my eyes and leaned my head back before opening one eye glancing at Twilight as she asked "What happened to you? It had to be pretty bad if you're trying to impersonate a mummy when you're not in Halloweentown."

I sighed and leaned forward resting an arm on a knee that was pulled up to my chest as I stared at the scene before me saying "Let's just say that pissing Xemnas off is probably not the best idea I had in my lifetime…though if I had the choice I'd…probably do the same thing over again." Trusting the girl next to me to put the pieces together without me having to spell it out to her, she may not have acted it sometimes but Twilight was one of the smartest people I had ever met even if she did sometimes lack common sense when it came to some things. I smirked slightly resting my forehead against my knee thinking though that I wouldn't have wanted her any other way though.

Twilight watched me for a moment before shaking her head muttering "You would. How'd you get out of there?"

I grinned and shook my head explaining vaguely "I had some help." Twilight raised an eyebrow at me questioningly but shook her head before standing up and offering me her hand. Grinning I took the offered hand and she helped me up as I stood I grunted and sighed, pushing back the pain of a stiff back before winking at Twilight's worried face with a reassuring smile. She grinned and headed into the cabin as soon as she was out of sight, the smile faded and I stared at the spot that she had been with haunted eyes before shaking my head and headed into the cabin. I wasn't going to be able to shake this incident off easily as I made it appear to her. I had recovered some with Axel but it was still too soon.

Leaning against the wall I blinked as Jack said "Pardon me lads and lasses, but your Captain will have no monsters today. Thank ye. We're turning for home."

I watched as he turned around and started to walk out Elizabeth calling after him in shock "Just like that?"

He didn't even glance back as he waved a hand at her replying smugly "Just like that." I blinked as he started walking past me and I shook my head with an amused smile. I knew Luxord would be outside but I could barely feel him on the edge of my perception. I shrugged it off internally figuring it was because I wasn't fully recovered yet. I watched as Jack pushed open the doors stopping short. Glancing over at him I stared at his back as he said, a hint of anger in his voice but more annoyance, "Don't remember invitin' you."

Sora ran past me and joined Jack on deck, both males having drawn their weapons and were standing in defensive stances as Sora exclaimed "So it _was_ the Organization. We'll handle this!"

I walked out on deck with my arms crossed as Lux held up a hand making the boys pause in their actions before the British Nobody started speaking in an accent that most women would drool over "The Darkness of men's hearts…drawn to these cursed medallions; and this Heartless…a veritable of avarice…" My eye twitched as the _purple_ Grim Reaper Heartless appeared behind Luxord as he continued to pace and talk at the same time "I wonder, are they worthy to serve Organization XIII?"

I rolled my eyes as Jack asked sarcastically "And you want an answer now?"

I could hear the smirk in Luxord's voice as he answered "Precisely!"

We watched as Luxord vanished and I started to summon my sword when Sora yelled back at me "Ghost, you stay out of this! You're in no condition to fight!"

I opened my mouth to protest as Jack glanced back at me saying "He's right about that Fire Sprite and we both know it."

I let the protest go and gave an annoyed sigh saying "Five minutes."

Jack smirked as he returned his attention to the fight muttering under his breath "That's Fire Sprite for ye." I moved back into the cabin where it was relatively safe, unless it came crashing through the door, and Elizabeth watched as I paced around the small cabin silently my footsteps barely noticeable over the clash of battle from outside.

The young woman watched me for a few moments before saying "You should rest before you reopen your wounds." I placed a hand on the side of my neck, eyes dark as I touched the bandages that were wrapped around my neck. I gave a frustrated sigh as I glared at the ground at my feet, Elizabeth watching uncertain what to do with the young woman before her. She hardly knew anything about the girl that was called Ghost and she had a feeling that she didn't particularly like it when people dug into the past but Elizabeth watched in concern as the glare changed into a stony expression that she had only seen on soldiers and hardened criminals before.

I glanced over at Elizabeth quietly for a moment before glancing back at the door, my arms crossed and shoulders tense as I waited for the battle to end or their five minutes to be done, whichever one came first. Tapping an impatient finger on one of my arms I glared at the door, Elizabeth relaxing slightly when expression returned to my face. I heard a splash and headed out the door staring at the chest as Luxord reappeared behind it. I had the distinct impression that he was staring at me and I glared right back at him. The others jumped around me, not risking a repeat performance of Hollow Bastion, as Luxord pulled off his hood revealing short blond hair and beard, hard blue eyes watching us as he smirked. I watched him silently my arms crossed. I was not in the mood to be messed with at the moment.

He smirked before Jack ordered from next to me, my eyes never leaving the man in front of us, "Throw him overboard!"

Sora nodded replying seriously "Aye aye!"

I raised an eyebrow at Luxord as he yelled "Parley!"

Surprised Jack jerked up in surprise asking "'Scuse me?"

Goofy tilted his head confused asking "Barley?"

I rolled my eyes saying "He said Parley."

Sora blinked as he asked "What's that?"

Jack ground his teeth in frustration before explaining lightly "It's a bit of a pirates' code. Anyone who invokes "parley" must not be harmed 'til the negotiations are complete."

Twilight grinned as she said "As set forth by Morgan and Bartholomew."

I rolled my eyes with a smirk as I muttered in an amused tone, loud enough for everyone to hear "French."

Twilight chuckled and Jack raised an eyebrow at the two of us for a moment before turning back to Sora saying "As we're honorable pirates we should always stick to the Code." He paused for a moment turning back to Luxord snapping "All right, you. Out with it!"

Indicating the chest Luxord said with as much false sincerity in his voice as he could muster "I surrender the chest with my humblest apologies."

Jack nodded slightly as he said, suspicion clear in his voice, "Rather accommodating of you, mate. And for that you want…?"

My eyes narrowed as Lux reached into the chest saying "Just a few souvenirs…for the memories."

Confused Jack's only response was "Huh?" He tossed four medallions up, Gambler Nobodies grabbing them. One of them vanishing in mid-air. The others looked on confused as I slid through the shadows grabbing the coin before it fell on deck swinging around Luxord and out of his range, seemingly appearing behind him. They glanced back at Twilight as she lowered her hand with a triumphant grin as her hand glowed faintly with the remaining power there.

Luxord raised an eyebrow at her before turning to face me saying "As your visit was cut short, my leader has asked me to inform you that he regrets that you couldn't have stayed longer."

I raised an eyebrow at the man before responding "You can tell your boss to Kiss. My. Ass." Luxord blinked in surprise as the boys stared at me. I had been curbing my language so much that they were still surprised whenever they actually heard me swear and anger... Luxord however was surprised by something completely different; it had been the amount of venom that had entered my voice that sent chills up his spine and through his non-existent heart.

He composed himself quickly before giving a stately nod in my direction saying "I shall inform him of your sentiments."

I smirked with cold eyes as he glanced over his shoulder as Jack growled threateningly at the Nobody "Our friend's about to learn what it means to cross a pirate."

Luxord arched a light blond eyebrow at the pirate with a smug "Oh?" The ship rocked violently for a moment as I turned around to see the Heartless that had been defeated by the others rising up from the water. Salt water dripping off of its bony figure and scythe as it swung over the deck of the ship. I blinked in surprise as I felt a hand clamp onto my forearm and grunted as Jack yanked me away from the creature as it swung its scythe at us. I yelped in surprise as I felt myself suddenly airborne headed towards the Interceptor. Arms wrapped themselves around me and I landed on something decidedly softer than the deck of a ship. I pushed myself up and looked under me at Jack as he pushed himself into a sitting position, surprised that he would be that concerned about me, enough to protect me. Glancing around quickly I saw Twilight rolling off of Sora, who had grabbed her. I blinked as I heard someone yell "Fire!"

"Shit!" Swearing loudly, I hit the deck, literally, and covered my head with my hands as the cannons on the Black Pearl fired on the Interceptor. Something hit the side of my head and I slumped on deck, a warm presence next to me, already unconscious for the moment.

* * *

Grunting I pushed myself up hissing in pain as I touched the side of my skull, pulling bloodied fingers away. _'How don't I have brain damage already?'_ Shaking my head to clear the spots I pushed myself up and glanced to the side to see Jack laying the partly in the moonlight. I sighed as his torso and head were bones and reached over shaking him lightly effectively waking the man up. He grunted and pushed himself up before staring at himself in surprise and giving an exasperated, yet confused, sigh before standing up and tacking stock of where we were. Walking fully into the moonlight he turned back to me, full skeleton, saying "This is why I told ye ta stay in the cabin and stay out of trouble." I raised an eyebrow at the skeleton questioningly as he elaborated "Yer bleeding again and ye have a new wound."

I rolled my eyes muttering "Woulda happened eventually anyways." Jack rolled his eyes at the stubborn girl in front of him before we both turned to where the others were waking up. Sora groaned and pushed himself up immediately noticing Jack, who was standing in the moonlight in all his skeleton glory.

Sora blinked for a moment before asking exasperated with the pirate, "You stole a medallion again?"

Jack sighed before answering with an annoyed tone of voice "Were I only that fortunate…" Twilight moved over to me and handed me a potion which I slugged down with a grimace, the wound on my head stitching itself back together as Jack tried to explain why he was, as Goofy put it, skelenton-y "Perhaps I got a touch o' somethin' from that monster what attacked us. Yet, why's the skin restin' right on you five?" I shrugged at the man tossing a single gold medallion up and down.

Catching it quickly I shoved the medallion into my pocket wincing at the homesickness in Sora's voice as he said "Yeah…we're just passing through…Wonder when we'll see home again…"

Both Twilight and I glanced at each other and I sighed patting her arm comfortingly as I buried my own wave of homesickness back, Donald looking up at the boy with a worried expression as the duck muttered "Sora…"

The brunette jerked out of his gloom and smiled at the rest of us saying excitedly "Just kiddin' you. Lucky we didn't get cursed, huh?"

Jack had moved out of the moonlight and looked human again before turning around ordering "Quit yammerin', mates! We've got to find ourselves a ship that'll float. The two lasses should stay here." I opened my mouth to protest but Jack cut me off "No arguin' Fire Sprite, ye've been injured enough."

I huffed and crossed my arms muttering "Fine." Jack blinked slowly before turning around and left the boys trailing after him.

Twilight glanced at me saying "He's just looking out for you." My eyes shifted over to her and I smirked fondly nodding as I said "I know." Twilight blinked before circling around me, her sharp eyes observing the bandages that could be seen under my cloths as they wrapped around my neck and torso.

Blue eyes dark she asked "How'd you get the big wound?"

I blinked turning towards her before scratching the back of my head sheepishly almost, saying "Um…well you see… I kind of sort of pissed off the guy with the light saber."

Twilight rolled her eyes automatically correcting me "It's an Arial blade not a light saber." She blinked and her head jerked up to stare at me asking "How'd you manage to piss him off that badly?"

I grinned for a moment savoring the memory of Xemnas's stunned face, patting Twilight's shoulder my grin widened as I said "Nothing that can be repeated here." Twilight raised a slim eyebrow at me questioningly and I explained "For mature audiences only."

Twilight sighed and rolled her eyes clarifying "In other words you had a complete lapse of common sense and went into graphic detail about what you were going to do to him if you ever got your hands on him."

I gave a malicious grin as I nodded saying "Yep, that's pretty much it." We both looked around as running footsteps were heard coming our way, the Nobody that had the medallion running into the room that we were in. As it tries to run past us I cloths lined it with my arm as Twilight yanked out her sword and stabbed through it causing it to disappear as the others ran into the room where we were. I crouched down picking up the medallion, tossing it to Jack, followed by the other one that I had grabbed.

Jack pocketed the two medallions saying "Two more to go."

Sora blinked in surprise asking skeptically "How do you know?"

Jack smirked as he turned back to the boy saying "A pirate must have a keen eye. Else he won't be sailin' free for very long. Savvy?"

We glanced over at Donald as he yelled "Huh? What's that?"

Following his pointing finger we watched as a ship made its way through the dense fog that surrounded the isle of sinking ships and I smirked as Elizabeth yelled down to us "Ahoy, mateys!"

Jack placed a hand on his hip, waving a hand around, as he said "Ridiculous imitation…and yet, I'm flattered." Both Twilight and I glanced at each other and giggled quietly as they dropped the gangplank and we headed on board.

Once on the Black Pearl Elizabeth blinked before covering her mouth with both hands as she saw Jack's skeleton form walking in the moonlight, managing to gasp out "Jack, what happened? This is horrible!"

Jack shrugged, waving a boney hand as he asked "Ah, but who's to blame for it, eh?"

Will's eyes narrowed as he came to Elizabeth's defense saying "Well, it certainly isn't Elizabeth."

Sora glanced between the three older people, though that was debatable on Will and Elizabeth's part in conjunction to me and Twilight, on ship before putting in his two cents saying "It's Organization XIII. They're the ones behind it all."

Goofy tilted his head, putting a hand on his chin mumbling "Wonder where they went."

Will glanced over at the anamorphic dog saying "The hooded man took the pirates and his creatures with him into some strange hole. We saw them leave from inside the captain's statesroom."

'_So they left by portal. Not really a surprise there.' _

I glanced over at Jack as he raised an eyebrow at the younger man asking tersely "Didn't occur to you to fight them, mate?"

Will's eyebrow's rose on his forehead as he watched the pirate before answering "I'm no fool. I knew I was no match for them."

Jack rolled his eyes as he turned away muttering jadedly "That I believe."

Will shook his head at the other man before turning to Sora saying "I think we'll need your help."

Sora pumped a fist with a smirk and a nod as he said "Got it."

Will smiled in relief at the boy before saying "First, let's find all the medallions. Otherwise, the curse can't be broken and the creatures will remain invincible." Sora nodded and Jack headed up to the helm, taking out his compass and setting a course for Isle de Muerta, not that anyone else knew it. I sighed and headed up to the Crow's Nest, settling down with a small smile as I listened to the others talk below, their words captured by the wind.

* * *

Hours later found me pacing on the deck of the Black Pearl, having landed at Isle de Muerta and sworn to not leave the ship by Jack. I was a man…well woman, of my word so I ended up pacing around the deck. Twilight was sitting with her back against the stateroom just watching me as I walked, up the stairs, passed the helm, down the stairs, to the bow, and back over and over again. Elizabeth had gone into the statesroom having given up on trying to get me to stop. Twilight sighed and called up to me as I passed the helm, again "He's just looking out for you. We discussed this before. Simply because Sora agreed with him doesn't mean that you can get all angry about it."

As I headed down the stairs once again I said "They're treating me like glass Twilight. I'm not gonna break." Twilight sighed as I rounded the bow my eyes catching movement on the shore. Twilight blinked as my footsteps stopped and she stood up, walking up next to me we watched as Jack and the boys made their way back to the ship.

She glanced over at me as I tracked their progress and ordered "Now, play nice."

I glanced over at her from the corner of my eye before slumping with a sigh muttering loudly "Fine. You just want to ruin all my fun." Twilight blinked before shaking her head with a smile as the others boarded the ship.

Leaning on the railing I watched as Sora lightly tossed all four of the madallions in his hands triumphantly saying "That's four medallions! We got 'em all!"

I raised an eyebrow as Jack asked "But where's the chest?"

Everyone directed their attention to Will as he said "If we find the hooded man, we'll find it."

Twilight glanced over at me as I did passable impersonation of Jack quietly, waving one hand "Ah, where's the hooded man?"

Twilight chuckled as Sora piped in "Prob'ly in Port Royal."

Elizabeth quirked a quizzical look at the boy as she asked "Why's that?"

I grinned as I answered her, the others directing their attention to me as I said "They'll go where the largest population will be."

Twilight nodded and explained "The Org. is after people's hearts and they want lots of hearts."

Will's eyes narrowed before widening in shock a hint of panic in his voice as he asked "They'll hurt the townsfolk?"

Jack rolled his eyes sarcastically saying "No, they're bringin' 'em flowers, mate. I don't know who these Organizers are, but I will say they're makin' we pirates look like proper gents." I blinked in quiet surprise as Jack's voice had gone from sarcastic to pissed through the course of one sentence.

We watched as he headed up to the helm, the pirate pausing on the stairs as Will exclaimed "Well, Jack…then we…we'll have to help!"

He started up the stairs again in silence only turning back to us when he reached the deck, calling down to us "Then let go, and haul to run free!" The others scattered to take care of everything and I headed up to the helm. Tilting my head curiously as I watched Jack grip the wheel angrily before letting out a sigh and flipping open his compass.

I raised an eyebrow and sat on the railing next to him asking "You all right?"

Jack glanced back at me with a roguish smirk saying "I'm fine, Fire Sprite. Get up to your station." I watched him for a moment more before nodding and heading off, heading up the rigging to the Crow's Nest.

* * *

I was sliding down the rigging to the deck because we were in the process of docking in Port Royal. Touching down on the deck I moved over to the group that would be heading into town. Jack glanced over at me before ordering "You stay on ship Fire Sprite."

My eye twitched and I put my foot down saying "I refuse."

Jack blinked, his eyes narrowing slightly, as I refused his orders and growled "You'll only slow us down Fire Sprite. We can't be lookin' out for ye in the midst of a battle." My own eyes narrowed as well and I stalked up to him until we were less than a foot apart.

I glared up into his dark eyes before growling back at him "Stop treating me like some stupid damsel, Jack. I don't need protecting." The two of us stared at the other in a mental game of chicken, waiting to see who blinked.

Will shook his head at the two of us muttering to Elizabeth "What a strong willed woman."

Twilight sighed and put her weight onto one leg muttering "A strong willed woman that isn't use to nor does she want to be protected. That's Ghost for ya."

Jack sighed and shook his head as he propped his hands on his waist muttering "Fine. But when ye get hurt don't cry to me, ye hear." I grinned and hugged a shocked Jack for a moment before walking over to the gangplank, a skip to my steps. Twilight shook her head in amusement and patted Jack's shoulder in sympathy as she walked past him. The boys shrugged and ran down the gangplank and towards the fort, closely followed by Jack, Will, Twilight, and I. Jack had gone all skeleton-y, as Goofy put it, as the clouds had moved out of the way. Running to the juncture between the fort and the town we stopped as we saw the Heartless hovering over the chest. Jack brought out his sword murmuring to us "Go! He's for me." We watched as Jack took off to the side drawing the Heartless away from the chest, the boys and Will running forward. My eyes flicked to the Heartless as the curse broke away from it and yet, Jack was still a walking, talking corpse. Jack paused and looked at his still bony hands asking "Then, what's this?"

I blinked as Goofy exclaimed, much to everyone's surprise, "Aw, I understand. Jack musta been cursed by that monster, not from takin' the gold."

Jack's skeleton form slumped as he muttered sarcastically "Oh, I've no worries, then." Sora clenched a fist as he tried to cheer Jack up, while I walked over to the boys Twilight running ahead.

Stopping in front of Will she said "You better get out of here, you aren't used to fighting monsters like this." Will opened his mouth to protest for a moment before grabbing the girl as they dodged out of the way of the Heartless's violent swing down. I jumped back, holding up a hand to keep my face from getting pelted by the gold that was showering down everywhere. Wincing slightly I placed a hand on my ribs before ignoring it and charging forward distracting the Heartless as Twilight and Sora started to scoop up the coins. Oddly enough every time we hit the creature more coins popped out of it and then the others had to grab those as well. My sword flicked up slicing into flesh as the Heartless returned to its living state. Those that were close enough jumped into the fight cutting into the Heartless. I yelped and ducked in surprise, shadows springing up around me, as the Heartless swung its pendulum-like scythe in a circle nearly chopping my head off. Slipping through the shadows I backed up slightly catching my breath once I was out of range before dropping the shadows and charging back into the fight. Pausing next to Twilight I placed a hand on her shoulder and whispered something in her ear. She blinked before a mischievous grin spread across her face, nodding she ran over to the chest as lights flickered around her for a moment. The Heartless was running around the courtyard the boys, plus one zombie…skeleton pirate, chasing after it. Sweeping its weapon around harshly it sent a shockwave blowing the boys back, I grunted as Sora landed on top of me with me just barely keeping my balance despite the sharp pain that jolted through my system. Sweeping its blade down at the chest it jerked back, staring between its weapon and the chest of gold for a second before trying to hit it once again with the same result. The light wavered like a hot day before it flowed away from the barrier that Twilight had set up around the chest, said girl sitting on the ground with her back against it and a smug grin on her face as she stared up at the creature. Keeping the barrier steady she gathered a sphere of light in her hands before blasting the creature.

A light spear burst through the Heartless's chest the monster rapidly disappearing back into the shadows, the heart that it had contained floating into the night sky only to be captured by Luxord who congratulated "Sora, bravo." The others ran forward as the blond vanished into a portal of darkness making them stop short. Once the creature had fully dissipated Jack changed back into a fully fleshed man. Raising a hand into the air he inspected his hand with a pleased smile before kissing his knuckles. I rolled my eyes before settling down on the rim of the chest watching Sora and Jack talk, Will and Elizabeth joining them shortly after they had started.

I blinked as they turned their attention towards us and started to move over, Jack glancing around muttering "Now, how ta get it on to the ship?" I rolled my eyes and grinned as both I and the chest sunk into the ground a pool of darkness surrounding it.

Waving at them, I winked and said "See ya on the ship." Twilight rolled her eyes before turning around and headed back to the Black Pearl as both the chest and I reappeared out of the darkness and on the ship. My eyes narrowed slightly as I let out a tired sigh before smiling at Twilight as her head appeared as she walked up the gangplank followed by the others.

Jack shook his head, practically hearing what Pintel and Ragetti would be arguing over if they had seen what she had done, before ordering "Weigh anchor, let loose the ties. We're settin' sail." The boys jumped to it and I grinned at the man as he walked over to me. Propping his hands on his hips he sighed and shook his head before saying "Ye were reckless." I raised an eyebrow at him but he held up a hand stalling any protest that I might have said as he continued "But, that's what makes ye Fire Sprite. Just be more careful in the future, I'll nay be losing the members of me crew I actually like."

I blinked before giving a small smile to the man, standing up I brushed the back of my coat saying "Don't worry. I'll be fine."

Jack chuckled before he started heading to the helm calling over his shoulder "My offer still stands. Ye and Twi would make a great couple 'o pirates." I chuckled and shook my head as Twilight walked over to me.

I glanced over at her saying "I don't think either one of us will ever be unemployed. I've got offers from both Phil and Jack. You have at least Jack and everyone else on the restoration committee wanting you back."

Twilight grinned and nodded saying "Yeah, I think we'd be fine if we…" She paused and gulped slightly before continuing "…never got home."

My eyes saddened and I looked at the deck for a moment before shaking my head clapping the girl on the shoulder saying "We'll be fine. Besides you'll probably see Dem later." The mere mention of Demyx cheered the girl and she grinned happily, a small blush tingeing her cheeks pink. Chuckling I headed to one of the railings and leaned my elbows on it watching the water as we pulled away from Port Royal.

We watched as Jack, Will, and Sora put their shoulders against the chest and pushed it off the ship with a splash, letting the chest and treasure it held sink to the bottom of the ocean. Jack gave a satisfied smirk before turning back to us saying "It's certain we don't need the likes of that hooded fellow and the Heartless about. They'll ruin the market for us true pirates."

I blinked as Elizabeth stepped forward directing cynical eyes towards the man before they became amused as she said "So that's why you went to Port Royal. And we thought you actually wanted to save everyone."

Jack smirked before explaining "A pirate always looks to profit, Miss Swann."

Sora chuckled before saying "Too bad. You had us going there, thinking you'd turned over a new leaf."

I gave a curt laugh as Twilight chocked out quietly "The day Jack Sparrow turns over a new leaf is the day of the apocalypse."

Jack glanced back at the two of us with a raised eyebrow before turning back to the others with his hands raised as he asked "The question is, what's beyond the leaf? Savvy?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes, and if it had been in any less dignified of a lady she would've snorted, before saying "Oh…oh, yes…a reward. And what'll it be?"

We smirked and I raised an eyebrow as Jack answered "That lovely blade of Sora's." Everyone jumped in surprise, Sora recovering quickly.

Nodding the boy agreed "Okay. Sure."

Holding out the Keyblade, Jack hesitated suspicious saying "Hold on! That was far too easy. What's the rub?" Moving forward he hesitated for a moment before gripping the hilt of the Keyblade and holding it before his eyes. It was a strange sight to see Jack holding onto the Keyblade but the look on his face was priceless as the oversized key flashed back into Sora's hands. Pointing at the blade Jack said "There, you see?"

Sora shrugged as he said "Well, you've always got the Pearl, Jack."

The pirate captain smirked as he said satisfied "That I do. But someday, I'll gather a blood-thirsty crew, and come to take that blade. Chance by then I'll have the way to wield it. And if I succeed, I'll ask you two to join me. That'd be reward enough. Especially if Fire Sprite and Twi would join the crew, that'll keep things interesting."

"Done." Will whipped around to stare at Elizabeth who had answered quickly.

I chuckled at his stunned expression before turning to Goofy as he told Donald "Maybe someday, Jack'll be able to use the Keyblade after all."

Donald tilted his head curiously as he asked "Why's that?"

Goofy laughed turning to the two in question saying "He and Sora are kind of alike, dontcha think?"

Twilight and I fell over hysterical as Jack and Sora moved at the same time saying simultaneously "Are not!" Everyone else joining in on the laughter as the two turned to stare at each other in bewilderment. As the laughter subdued around us I picked myself up from where I had slide to the ground and grinned as I joined the boys as Donald prepared to take us back to the gummi ship. Waving at Jack and the others we said our goodbyes and vanished off the deck of the Black Pearl in a flash of light.


	32. Bird Brain

**Hey guys. Sorry about the long wait things...came up. A friend of mine, guy I had known pretty much my entire life, died which really threw me for a loop stopping all writing on every project that I had going, then college started back up so there was all of that work going on. Also on a different note the friend I based Twilight on, we had a falling out so it's been difficult to write that part. I'm hoping that Twilight has become enough of her own character that I can continue on after this story, for this was always meant to be a series. So again sorry for the wait. **

I'm not going to be putting out individual shout outs for this chapter simply for the reason that I have to thank all of you, who have been so patient with me and my ever sporadic updating skills.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize.

* * *

**Chapter 32: Bird brain**

We settled in our places around the gummi ship, Sora putting in auto before heading back to sleep, leaving Twilight and I in the front seats to watch over the ship.

As the snores of our companions reached our ears Twilight turned to me ordering "Talk." I blinked in surprise before glancing at her with a questioning look causing her to explain "You haven't told me about what happened after you got caught. Now talk to me, it'd be better for you if you did."

My eyes narrowed and I was tempted to snap at her but I sighed instead and propped my chin on a fist, looking anywhere but her as I said "I got out; Axel brought me to Jack and looked after me."

Twilight's eyes narrowed as she asked "And before you got out?"

I sighed and glanced at her saying "Don't worry about it. It's nothing for you to be concerned about." She opened her mouth to insist but I glared at her growling "Enough Twilight. This discussion is over." Twilight blinked before looking away. I sighed and stared out the window in silence. '_I was scared. Terrified, really. I'll admit that to myself but…I'm not about to admit that to anyone else. That would mean…defeat, I gave in to that fear and I can't do that.' _I shook my head before standing up and heading into the kitchen and grabbing a couple of mugs. Filling them with hot chocolate I headed back out and set one down on the arm of her chair causing the blond to glance at the mug before looking over at me as I settled down in my chair. Sighing I ran a hand through my hair saying "Twi…I, I'm just not ready to talk about it right now. Okay?" I glanced over at her, her eyes were still sad but she nodded slowly and picked up the cup. Waiting for the time when we would get off of our shift.

* * *

Morning found us in a familiar desert and I sighed as I left my coat in the ship before jumping down to the sandy ground below. Running a finger on the newly scarred skin on my neck I sighed in relief at the feeling the actual wind on my neck, having removed the bandages early that morning. The boys headed towards the peddler's shop and both Twilight and I gave each other amused glances before following them into the shop. Walking in Twilight's hand flashed up and she grabbed the vase that Donald had bumped, stopping it from falling to the ground. The peddler hearing the commotion though whipped around yelling "You break it, you buy it! Oh! Hello there, friends."

Sora looked around the impressive room, it had been covered with gold, putting his hands on his hips he nodded while commenting "Wow! You made out like a bandit!"

The large turban wobbled as the peddler shook his head rapidly saying "Please…I am but an honest merchant. What you see is merely the reward for my hard work."

I rolled my eyes and leaned over to Twilight murmuring "He's about as honest as a Black market dealer working with a syndicate cop."

The girl snickered quietly as the "honest" merchant attempted to sell us something only to be politely refused by Sora "No thanks. Listen, have you seen a guy in a black coat? Someone from Organization XIII?"

The man adopted a confused look as he asked "Who me?"

'_Do you see anyone else here?' _

"Most certainly not…"

I rolled my eyes as Sora nodded, letting his naïveté get the best of him, as he said "Okay. We'll keep asking around, then."

The brunette had turned to leave, the others making their way to follow him, before stopping short as Aladdin and his animal counter-parts ran in yelling "Sora! Don't let him get away!"

I rolled my eyes as everyone looked around to see that the peddler was nowhere in sight before sighing as I muttered "Warn faster next time."

Iago flew over to Twilight lighting on her shoulder, the girl reaching up to stroke his feathery back as Sora asked "What's going on?"

Aladdin put a hand to his head with a sigh before explaining irritated "Can't believe it…That stupid peddler let Jafar out of the lamp!"

Both Twilight and I put on confused faces, remembering that we weren't supposed to know anything about the goateed man, as the others yelled "Jafar?"

Twilight looked over at the boy asking "Who's Jafar?"

Aladdin glanced over at her explaining briefly "He tried to take over the last time before he got stuck in a lamp when he wished himself to be a genie."

I raised an eyebrow at him before muttering "Well that was stupid."

Sora nodded before continuing "Plus he had this really creepy laugh."

I grinned and chuckled as I said "Might have been creepy for you, would've probably been amusing for me."

The boys rolled their eyes before turning their attention onto Aladdin as he warned "You guys had better be careful." Donald crossed his arms and tilted his head confused making Aladdin explain, "I'm sure Jafar wants to take over Agrabah again, but I know he's out for revenge, too."

Sora scratched the back of his head with a sheepish smile as he muttered "I guess he's still sore about that whole lamp thing, huh."

Aladdin nodded and turned his attention to the bird on Twilight's shoulder saying "Iago was there when Jafar was released. Okay, Iago. Spill it."

The bird jumped from his perch and into the air squawking "Hey! I told you everything I know!"

Aladdin raised an eyebrow at the bird not believing him as he said "This is your one and only chance, Iago. If I find out later that you've been lying or hiding things from us, we're through. I'll never speak to you again!"

Iago slumped slightly and landed on Twilight's head saying quietly "I can't take it! I know where Jafar is!"

Goofy looked up at the bird asking "Where?"

The parrot looked between everyone in the group, my eyes narrowing, as he stuttered "Uh, er, I mean, that is, I, um…Ack! I really shouldn't…"

Aladdin's face hardened and he glared at the bird exclaiming "Iago!"

The dejected bird sighed, as Twilight lifted him gently off her head, and muttered "He's in the desert ruins."

Sora nodded and pumped a fist exclaiming "Let's get the jump on him. Lead the way!" Flapping his wings Iago settled back onto Twilight's shoulder as we headed out of the shop.

Twilight chuckled as she stroked Iago's glossy feathers as I walked next to her while she reassured the bird "It'll be alright, Iago." The red bird glanced at her before giving a shaky sigh while shaking its head at the girl as we passed through the gates of the city. Walking a few feet away from the stone walls of the city we stopped and stared at the sandstorm that was blowing through the desert.

Raising an eyebrow I announced to the others "I'm not walking through that."

Iago jumped off of Twilight's shoulder and flew up to the others, not even trying to hide his joy at the turn of events as he exclaimed "What a disaster! We're just gonna hafta turn back."

Aladdin put a hand on his chin muttering loudly "There's gotta be a way…"

We jumped as a voice came out of nowhere yelling "Aw, c'mon, kid, that's an easy one!" I shook my head with an amused smile as Genie flew around us, still yelling "Al, ol' buddy, ol' pal! This is what having a genie for a best friend is all about! I mean, how can you leave me on the sidelines in a time like this? Live large! Wow 'em, Al! Give 'em the old razzmatazz! What do ya say, kid?"

Sora grinned shaking his head before greeting the blue man "Hey, Genie!"

The floating blue specter whipped around exclaiming "Sora!" He vanished for a moment before reappearing in front of the boy asking excitedly "Wanna see a little something I call 'Sandstorm Sweep'?"

The boys all nodded eagerly responding "Uh-huh!"

The blue man whipped around raising his hands dramatically exclaiming "Alakaza…uh…" The genie slumped before continuing bordedly "You know? One lousy sandstorm is just too easy." He flicked his hand at it and vanished while the others watched amazed as the storm dissipated before their eyes. Genie's voice flitted back to them though he was nowhere to be seen "How about giving me a challenge next time, eh Al?"

I rolled my eyes before pointedly saying "I'm still not walking through all that. You guys have fun but I think I'm going to stay here." The boys blinked as I headed back into the city waving a hand over my shoulder to them. As the door closed behind me I looked around the busy marketplace and smiled. Moving through the market, dodging people, and looking at the wares that were there I relaxed and people watched for the first time in a long time. It brought back a sense of normalcy that I had lost. I don't know how long I spent in that market just enjoying the feeling of being in a bustling city again before I found myself in front of the palace. It was unusually quiet around the large building and I soon saw why as the door was hanging off of its hinges. Slipping into the shadows I silently headed into the courtyard to see Jasmine chained to one of the doors that lead to the interior of the building. She was struggling against the chains and I winced as an image flowed through my mind and I could feel the manacles on my wrists once again. The shadows wavered around me for a moment before steadying once again as I returned my attention to them.

I moved closer as the incredibly tall Jafar bent down saying "All of Agrabah will belong to me, while you…You, my queen, shall weep at my side for all eternity!" I gagged silently, that was just gross. He was old enough to be her father. The chained girl struggled to look over the man's shoulder as I moved back to the door and spotted the others running back. Moving to the other side the shadows dissipated and I waved at them silently urging them to hurry up. Seeing me and my frantic waving they started to move faster and joined me in the courtyard, everyone drawing weapons.

The man sneered contemptuously as Aladdin asked snidely "What was that you were saying, Jafar?"

Iago peeked from behind Goofy's shield, only to be spotted by the court wizard turned genie, making the man yell "You dare defy me! You useless bird!" Jafar charged up his cobra staff the ruby eyes glowing. Both Goofy and Iago cringed but the wizard directed his attack on Aladdin, everyone gasping as Iago got in the way of the attack with a yell. Twilight gave a yell and swept the bird into her hands, holding him protectively. I looked over the bird before turning my attention to Jafar with a glare as he declared "You'll all be joining him…VERY soon!" The man had a pink glow around him and smoke was billowing around him before a flash of light circled around him as he grew into a very large, very angry, red genie. My jaw clenched and I grabbed onto Twilight, a portal forming around us as a tower of the palace fell, crashing with a bang where we had been standing moments before. I was starting to get the hang of portals, the headaches were getting smaller. The darkness vanished from around us and we looked around the chaotic streets of Agrabah. Civilians were running everywhere, our heads jerked up as we stared at the red genie as he continued to grow over the city, laughing manically. We blinked as Sora swooped past us on Carpet, heading straight towards the genie. Patting a hand on Twilight's shoulder I vanished into the darkness as she started to send spears of light at the genie. I was using the portals to move quickly and was dodging the various buildings that were flying everywhere. Flinging a hand out I cast a Thunder spell, the white lightning slamming into the genie as Sora grabbed his…tail and spun him around. Dizzy, Jafar remained unmoving as both Sora and I attacked him. I blinked as the genie began to regain his coherency and lashed out at everything. Putting my arms up as feeble protection the genie sent my flying as I was backhanded across the city, already feeling the bruise blossoming on my arms. I blinked in surprise as I felt arms wrap around me before crashing through a window into someone's abandoned home. Pushing myself up with a groan I blinked in surprise as I saw the familiar red head laying beneath me. He pushed himself up slightly, with me sitting in his lap, as Twilight appeared in the doorway.

Seeing the two of us there relatively unharmed she gave a relieved sigh before muttering "Sure, her boyfriend can catch her. Now why can't mine?"

Axel groaned, as she ran back into the fight, and murmured "Since when was I your boyfriend?"

I grinned and turned back to him teasingly as I answered "I think you claimed that title in Port Royal."

Axel sighed and shook his head saying "She could've at least waited for me to actually ask you." I blinked before jolting off of him, my eyes wide with shock as he stared up at me in surprise.

I blinked before stuttering "Y-you w-want to ask me to be your…g-g-girl…"

He raised an eyebrow as me before continuing when I seemed unable to, my mouth moving but no sound coming out "Girlfriend? Only if you want to."

I stared at him for a moment before shaking my head violently, on the verge of hyperventilating, in one breath exclaiming "No! I'm not that kind of girl! No one asks me out! I'm the one that they ask for backup in fights, poker games, football stats! I'm not girlfriend material."

Axel stood up as I backed myself up into a corner and moved in front of me placing his hands on my shoulders ordering gently "Calm down." I blinked and took a deep breath as he continued "The males in your world must have been stupid or at the very least foolish to have not asked you out."

Calming down I shook my head fervently saying "They weren't. I'm friend material, not relationship."

Axel smirked before pulling me into an easy hug whispering "Well, I want you to be my girlfriend. So will you?" I blinked as I stood there, dumbfounded by this unexpected turn of events. This had never happened before. I hadn't known him for long but still he wanted to try. Dating. It was a dream that I never thought would happen not in my world, certainly not in this one. Leaning back I looked up into green eyes before we both spilt jumping out of the way of a roof that came flying into the room.

Running back into the streets I yelled back to Axel "The answer's yes!"

I glanced back to see him smirk and vanish into a portal before I turned my attention back to the fight in front of me only to see Jafar withering in mid-air yelling pathetically "No…How can I _BE_ defeated again, by a pack of filthy street rats?"

I grinned as I walked up to Twilight, who was still holding onto Iago, saying "So we're street rats now, huh? I can live with that." Twilight laughed quietly as we waved over to Sora who landed next to us for the moment. Carpet flapped one of its tassels at us and we got on so that we could head back to where the lamp was.

Landing we watched as the black lamp vanished in a poof of smoke before jumping as Genie appeared suddenly yelling "You went mano a mano with Jafar, and you didn't invite me, Al?"

Aladdin shrugged up at the blue mystical being explaining "Sorry, Genie. Things happened kinda fast."

Genie huffed and turned around with his arms crossed saying disappointed "And I had some new moves to show off, too…"

I raised an eyebrow at the blue being in front of us as Donald explained "But, Genie, we still need your help!" Sora nodded asking "Who's gonna fix Agrabah?"

Genie threw a fist into the air exclaiming excitedly "Oh yeah! One super-duper spruced-up Agrabah comin' right up! You won't even recognize the place when I'm through with it!"

Sensing bad things happening Aladdin put a stop to Genie going over board by asking "Just like it was, please."

Genie blinked before asking in monotone voice "Really? Same old same old?" Both Sora and Aladdin nodded definitively making him slump before agreeing reluctantly "All right." Genie waved his hands, his magic flowing over the city quickly, vanishing as soon as he was done and calling out to us from wherever it was that he had disappeared to "Et voila! Next time let me put in a few swimming pools, 'kay?" Everyone sighed at the genie before turning away from the scene and walking back to the general vicinity of the peddler's shop. The civilian population was starting to filter back into the streets but they were cautious and often times the streets that we passed through were completely deserted, with the exception of the occasional Heartless.

Heading back towards the palace, Aladdin stretched his hands above his head with a sigh as Sora commented easily "I guess Agrabah's all right now."

The older man grinned and nodded as he said "Yeah! Thanks, guys."

We glanced over at Jasmine as she walked up to the group saying "You should stay the night at least. We have to thank you in some way."

Sora rubbed the back of his head sheepishly saying "No, that's alright."

The dark skinned female shook her head resolutely saying "I insist. This is the second time you've saved this city from Jafar, we want to thank you." Sora opened his mouth to protest but glanced back at the rest of us searching for help. He didn't find any. Both Donald and Goofy were looking forward to the food and Twilight and I needed a break, even we were starting to get worn down. Plus, we were hungry too.

Sora slumped in defeat before turning back to the princess saying "I guess we'll be staying for the night." Jasmine grinned delighted and hooked her arm with Aladdin's and grabbed onto Sora and started to drag them both along to the palace. Twilight shook her head with an amused grin before following them, Iago on her shoulder looking somewhat dejected until she started to talk to him. The bird listened to her before straightening up and nodding in agreement. Following behind the group I made my way back to the palace to see servants scurrying everywhere, preparing for something or cleaning up the place. There was even a person scrubbing the ceiling…I swear to Zeus there was. I blinked as a servant moved in front of each of us and started to drag us in different directions saying something about getting cleaned up from the fight. I sighed and shrugged at the others before allowing myself to get dragged off. The rest of the night consisting of laughter and good food, it was a time to forget the war that we still faced as we moved further on.


	33. Stop Thief!

****Well, I've got to at least somehow make up for being missing for what near about four months or so.

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**Chapter 33: Stop Thief!**

We all stared in confusion at the gloomy, familiar surroundings of the Hinterlands back in our Halloween Town cloths. The confusion was because something had been added to the scenery; brightly colored presents were scattered all around the dead forest's floor. Donald was the one to voice the obvious confusion that was sketched across all of our faces "Huh?" Twilight and I glanced at each other and sighed as we spotted Jack Skellington picking up the presents with his thin frame.

The skeleton man noticing us straightened up and waved a present in his hand as he called over happily "Perfect timing, gentlemen and ladies! Lend me a hand, won't you?" He walked over to us before continuing "These presents must belong to Sandy Claws. So I thought I'd better return them."

Sora crossed his arms suspiciously and asked the taller, dead man "You just happened to find them?"

Jack bent down and tapped the boy on the nose stating "Of course, Sora. I'm finished with Christmas fantasies. You know that." I rolled my eyes as Jack walked past us.

'_Then what's with the suit?' _

Sora seemed to be thinking along the same lines and turned around sounding somewhat exasperated as he asked "But…You thought you'd hold onto the suit?"

Jack turned around explaining amused "What, this? It's just a costume. And Sally worked so very hard making it! Come on. We've got work to do!" Twilight and I glanced at each other and shook our heads as we followed the others through the door that led to Christmas town. Brushing snow off of my long dark coat I followed the boys to Santa's house.

Walking into the big man's house we found the man in red pacing and as he turned to make another circuit spotted us and let out a surprised "Oh!" Sora and Jack placed the presents on the table while the rest of us stood back watching as Santa inspected the brightly wrapped packages asking "Wherever did you find these?"

Santa snatched the last present out of Jack's hand as the skeleton answered "In Halloween Town. You'll be needing them for Christmas, right, Sandy?"

Looking extremely relieved Santa nodded saying "Of course. But these are just a few of the Christmas presents that were stolen."

We all jerked up slightly with Sora exclaiming "Stolen?"

Everyone turned their attention to Jack who scratched his head while I raised an eyebrow at the bone man before Jack asked pleadingly "Oh, Sandy…You don't think it was ME?"

Santa wagged a finger at the taller man saying "Still wearing the outfit, I see."

Jack propped his hands on his hips and explained "I just thought I'd dress for the occasion. But if you don't believe me, then we'll just have to find out who really did it!" We all turned to the skeleton in surprise, well the boys did, Twilight and I just shot 'we-knew-you-were-going-to-say-that-but-we-really-don't-want-to-do-it' looks.

Santa stroked his beard slowly contemplating the offer that the bony whirlwind had given before agreeing "Very well, I'll leave it to you."

Jack grinned and turned around holding up a fist declaring "All right, Sora, Donald, Goofy, Twilight, Ghost! We're off!" We watched as he pointed a finger to the door and walked out; the five of us slumped in defeat before jumping as a crash came from the Factory next door. We ran into the Factory and followed Sora as he took the lead and ran up the stairs to the second story. Entering the room we watched the three hooligans of Halloween Town were looking through the toys tossing the ones that they didn't like…which was all of them.

Having seen enough Donald yelled "Hey!"

The two boys and single girl of the group looked up at us as Sora yelled "So YOU three took them!"

Confused the girl demanded with a stomp of her foot "Took what?"

Jack placed his hands on his hips and raised a brow ridge as he had no eyebrows, angrily accused "You stole the presents, didn't you!"

Lock shrugged as he mocked "It wasn't us!"

Barrel held his hands in front of him drawling "Buuuut…"

Continuing the thought Shock, pulling off her mask, "It really sounds like fun!"

Slapping her mask back onto her face she spun around and they all yelled "Run for it!"

My eyes widened as the kids scattered and Twilight yelled "Grab 'em!" Twilight through up a barrier in front of Barrel which he ran into falling onto his butt before getting up and running around as Twilight warped her barrier into a tunnel leading him into a box; sealing him in as she ran over to close the lid. I flicked a hand out and Shock ran straight into a portal which opened up above a box which I slammed the lid on and sat on to keep the angry child inside as she thumped the lid in her attempts to get out. Sora and the others grabbed Lock and tossed him into a box locking him in.

Sora propped his hands on his hips asking as he glared at the three "Where'd you put the presents?"

Shock shrugged as she said "We told you! We don't have 'em!"

Donald stomped his foot and demanded "Then why are you in here?" Lock sighed before explaining "We're looking for parts for the experiment."

Jack tilted his head confused as he asked "Experiment?"

Lock nodded and looked, way, up at Jack saying "Dr. Finkelstein's making us a friend!"

I leaned over to Twilight whispering "Were you surprised that the mad scientist was behind this?"

Twilight shook her head and muttered back "Not really. Mad scientists are usually up to something or other."

I smirked replying "Or in some way behind the entire thing. At least Wheels isn't as bad as Hojo." Twilight grinned as the three kids scrambled away leaving us behind.

Jack shook his head frustrated and turned around heading back to Santa who had spotted the three running away and asked "So, were those pranksters responsible for taking the gifts?"

Jack sighed and shook his head saying "It doesn't look like it…"

Santa's brow furrowed as he muttered "Then that means…"

He stopped and looked up at the door as Sally ran causing Jack to yell "Sally!"

Sally slowed to a stop and gasped "Oh, thank goodness! You're all here."

Sora tilted his head curiously "Is something wrong?"

Sally nodded furiously as she explained desperately "The Heartless are back in the town square. I thought you should know."

Sora's eyes widened and he proclaimed "That's our cue!"

Donald nodded and pointed towards the door that led to the snow filled outside "Back to Halloween Town!"

The boys started to leave pausing as Jack raised a hand towards them and exclaimed "But wait! What about finding the gift-napper?"

Sally turned and said "Actually…The Heartless were playing with some presents when I saw them…"

Jack pointed randomly, causing me to suppress an amused smile, as he yelled "Aha! We have our culprits!" Jack started to run and we followed quickly as he headed to Halloween Town his longer legs covering ground far quicker than our own.

We were all gasping for breath when we finally made it back to Halloween Town. We heard the Mayor yelling but we couldn't hear him clear enough to make out what he was yelling though Twilight and I were willing to bet money that him stating that 'he was only an elected official' was somewhere in there. I closed my eyes and let out a slow breath, trying to regulate my breathing, as Twilight panted beside me; we had made it to the Town Square in what had to be record time because of Jack running as fast as he did. I opened my eyes as I heard Jack stating "Sally was right. We've got to get the presents!" Sora's Keyblade was in his hands quickly and he charged destroying Heartless left and right. I rolled my eyes and tapped Twilight on the shoulder; she glanced up and then looked at the scene and sighed. Sora was forgetting about the presents scattered about and was almost stepping on some of them. Both Twilight and I joined Goofy as he started picking up the packages that would eventually be sent to kids all over the multi-verse. The Heartless gone and the presents piled up out of the way I watched as Jack moved forward and picked up the open box, stepping on the doll that had been inside of it in the process. Examining the opened present the skeleton said "What a shame! It looks like it was such a nice present." I frowned and portalled the doll away, causing Jack to stumble slightly, the doll landing in my hands only to be snatched away by Twilight, who clutched the poor thing to her chest protectively all the while glaring at the Pumpkin King.

We all turned as the door to Dr. Finkelstein's lab slammed open and he wheeled himself outside yelling in distraught, though it sounded fake to me, "Oh help! Someone help me! My latest experiment is gone! It's been stolen!" I rolled my eyes and followed the boys and a sympathetic Twilight into the lab where the good doctor informed us of what he had been doing "I was just sitting here brainstorming, when all of a sudden I was attacked! I collapsed! And when I awoke, my experiment was gone!"

Jack tapped his skull for a moment before realization passed over his face and he reassured the Doc "Don't worry, Doctor…we know who took it."

Finkelstein jolted upright in his chair demanding "Who?"

Sora cut in quickly answering easily "The Heartless."

Donald nodded in agreement as Finkelstein stroked his chin contemplating out loud "What, those wretched things? Preposterous! This was nothing like a Heartless."

Sora crossed his arms and tilted his head murmuring "Not the Heartless, huh…"

Donald looked up at the boy asking "Who else could it be?"

'_How 'bout an out of control machine, anyone think of that?' _

Jack held up a finger announcing "Say, I have an idea. The thief must like Christmas presents. So…We place irresistible gifts about to draw him into a trap."

Finkelstein turned his chair so he could face the taller man and asked "And this miscreant is the same one who stole my experiment?"

Jack grinned and nodded saying "That's right."

Sora looked up at the bone man asking "How will we know for sure?"

Jack gave a devilish smile and went into a scaring pose as he replied "Well, now, that's easy! We'll scare a confession right out of him!"

I slapped a hand to my forehead as Twilight rolled her eyes, Goofy's only response to the plan that Jack had concocted was a worried "Gawrsh…"

Sora joined our small group and leaned in whispering "What do you say we go with Jack's plan…just for now?" Donald tapped his foot on the floor as he stared up at the brunette and Sora shot Twilight and I a pleading glance causing the two of us to glance at each other and shrug simultaneously.

Sora grinned at our silent, yet grudging, consent and spun around giving Jack his cue to announce "Let's go to Sandy's house posthaste! We've got to make some Christmas presents, quickly!" I sighed as the boys ran out of the house followed by Twilight and I who were walking.

I glanced over at my partner in crime as she commented randomly "They run a lot."

I smirked and nodded as I replied "Well, it certainly keeps them in shape." Twilight chuckled and nodded as we picked up the pace; jogging into the Hinterlands to see that the door was already open and the boys nowhere in sight.

Twilight faked a sad sigh and muttered "They coulda waited for us."

I laughed and sped up calling over my shoulder as I jumped through the door "Have they ever waited?" I tucked myself into a ball as I landed out of the door and rolled out of Twilight's way so she didn't land on me. Squinting I spotted the boys already entering into Santa's factory and muttered "Wow, either we were really slow or they moved really fast."

Twilight pushed herself up and brushed snow off her shoulders saying "It was probably the second one. You know how they get." I chuckled and shook my head before starting down the hill to the house below, Twilight skipping ahead.

I chuckled and glanced at the sky asking "Where does she get the energy?" I lengthened my strides to keep up with the girl and reached the house as she was opening the door and we both headed into the welcoming warmth that was coming from the room.

I tilted my head curiously as Santa looked up from the chair to us as Twilight asked "Where are the guys?"

Santa smiled as he answered "They went to the factory. They said that they were going to use presents as bait to catch the thief."

I nodded and leaned against the wall, Twilight asking "Is it alright if we wait here for them? We could use a little bit of a break." Santa smiled and nodded indicating the plush chairs in the room Twilight sank gratefully into one of them while I just slid down the wall so I was sitting on the floor.

Santa glanced over at me saying "You can use one of the chairs Branwyn."

I winced slightly at the use of my full name but shook my head as I replied "It's alright." The man in red nodded slightly and leaned back in his own chair still going over the long list in his hands. We glanced up as Jack rushed through the door. We watched as he flew through the room and outside before the two of us turned to each other with looks of 'what the hell was that all about'. Grunting I pushed myself up from the floor and opened the door to the factory only to find Sora and the others standing there, Sora's hand raised up as if had just been about to open the door himself and a look of surprise on his face. I didn't even bother feigning surprise I just pushed open the door and walked back into the house and sat down on the armrest of Twilight's chair, Sora and the boys following me into the room.

Santa turned to the boys asking "Did you finish making the presents?"

Sora nodded as he responded "Yup, just waiting for Jack."

Goofy scratched his cheek as he asked "So, uh, where do you think we oughta leave them?"

Santa hid a smirk as he answered seriously "Oh, I know a good spot. Whenever you're ready just say the word."

"I'm back." We all turned to see Jack walking in and Santa nodded pushing himself up out of the seat.

Standing up I listened as Santa asked "Now then, are you all set?"

Sora grinned and nodded saying "Yes. Let's go!" Twilight and I sighed following the boys out; the two anamorphic animals were as enthusiastic as we were about this plan.

I wrapped my jacket closer around myself as a gust of wind blew through while Santa was unlocking a gate all the while saying "This plaza should work well for your plan. Now, Jack…what IS your plan?"

Jack grinned mischievously as he raised a finger saying "I've got it all figured out."

Santa raised a skeptical eyebrow asking "You do…"

Jack's grin widened and he threw his hands out excitedly exclaiming "Of course! And I also have a wonderful idea. If we catch the thief for you, I would be honored to deliver the…" Jack was cut off there due to the multiple hands that wrapped around his mouth sealing in the dreaded words.

Sora leaned around Jack saying quickly, while Jack struggled to get out of Twilight's and Sora's hold, "And on that note, we'll be going."

They started to pull Jack along with them all the while the skeleton man protesting "What are you doing? Let me go!"

Twilight frowned and scolded the taller man as she released her hold on the bone man "Then behave!" Jack pouted but followed us back to the Plaza where Sora finally let go of the Pumpkin King. The brunette patted Jack's shoulder sympathetically; the bone man didn't cheer up. I sighed and stared at the boys as, somehow, Jack managed to convince them to hide in one of the boxes…they were all in the same box.

Sora popped his head over the edge and called over to Twilight and I "C'mon."

I ran a hand through my hair muttering "You've got to be kidding me. Does he honestly think we're gonna get in that thing, let alone all fit in it?" Twilight shrugged with a bemused expression on her face as she stared at Sora who stared back confused as to why we weren't moving.

Twilight rolled her eyes and said "We'll wait over here." Sora shrugged, still confused, but nodded and ducked his head.

I closed the lid of the present before turning around and heading back to Twilight commenting lightly "It's like he's never heard of personal space."

Twilight shrugged as she responded, the two of us heading back into the comforting warmth of the house, "He's Sora." I chuckled and nodded, silently agreeing; there really wasn't any other explanation needed when it came to that boy.

Santa glanced up at us as we walked into the room and asked "Where are the others?"

I turned my head over to him as I answered drily "Hiding in a box." Santa raised an amused eyebrow before shaking his head and getting back to work as I leaned on the wall next to the window looking out at the Plaza.

Twilight moved so she was standing across from and asked "How long before they start fighting?" I rolled my eyes and shook my head with a wry smile touching my lips, my attention on the snow covered plaza outside the frosted glass.

Glancing over at Twilight I asked "Should we help them or let them take care of it themselves?"

Twilight tapped her chin, her eyes on the ceiling as she thought for a moment before answering "Let them take care of it." I nodded quietly and crossed my arms looking out the window with a small sigh. Twilight watched me in concern and asked "You okay?"

I glanced at her with a confused expression for a moment before flashing her a small reassuring smile as I answered "Yeah, just tired. I'll be fine…hey there's the crazy robot." Twilight looked out the window to see Finkelstein's creation wandering through the snow covered ground heading towards the plaza picking up presents that were to lead it to the boys.

Twilight raised an eyebrow at my expression which was a mix of annoyance and boredom and asked "Where are we headed next anyways?"

I bit my bottom lip for a moment before answering "We should be headed to the Pride Lands next."

Twilight nodded and frowned slightly before asking "You gonna be able to recharge between here and there?"

I snorted and smirked in amusement as I answered "Yeah. I'll just sleep the entire time. I think it's this world though; I'm usually never this tired. Maybe it's because it's a pseudo-darkness."

Twilight raised an eyebrow asking "Pseudo-darkness?"

I nodded and explained "It's mischief and fun loving here, almost like there's too much light. It's not the chaotic, all encompassing, eternal midnight that is true darkness."

Twilight's eyebrow rose even further before she grinned saying "Your inner-Genesis got out again." I chuckled at the reference, whenever I went and spoke deep thoughts we always called it my inner-Genesis because the man was always speaking in riddles otherwise known as Loveless. Santa came up behind us and peered out the window and headed to his sleigh waving a 'follow me' to us. Tilting my head curiously I glanced at Twilight, who shrugged, before we both followed Santa out into the cold.

He walked over to his sleigh and turning to us saying "Get on; it will be faster this way." I blinked and a grin spread itself across my face as Twilight jumped at the chance with me quickly following her. Santa chuckled at our eagerness and snapped the reigns giving the signal to the reindeer to take off. I shook my head as the wind blew my hair back reveling in the feeling of the wind flowing freely around us, Twilight was laughing happily as we headed down into the plaza where the guys were watching us from below. We touched down softly and Twilight and I jumped out of the sleigh quickly while Santa took his time following behind us as we headed over to the guys, the man in red asking "Did you catch the thief?"

Jack grinned and confidently, almost arrogantly, answered "Naturally!"

Sora frowned in confusion as he stared at the unmoving robot saying "I just can't figure out why the doctor's experiment would go around stealing Christmas presents."

Santa's brow furrowed in confusion and he asked "His experiment?"

Jack answered Santa as if it were obvious "The thief! It was a moving puppet made by Doctor Finkelstein."

We watched as Santa walked over to the robot muttering to himself "Hmm… the doctor's made a moving puppet? I see…He is always tinkering with things." Santa raised his voice so that he could be heard clearly and continued, turning around, "Now listen, Jack. I'd like to thank you, and while delivering presents is something only I can do, I can give you an idea of what it's like."

Jack blinked a couple of times in astonishment and the grin that stretched across his face would have been ear to ear if he had had any ears exclaiming ecstatic "Sandy Claws!"

I smiled in amusement as Jack leapt into the sleigh grinning like a kid in a candy store before turning my attention back to Santa as he said "Yes, all that poor puppet wanted was a heart."

Santa turned around and gave a slight nod to his lead reindeer who took off with Jack making like Santa calling out "Ho! Ho! Ho!" I shook my head at the bone man and Twilight looped her arm through mine and tugged me gently back towards the door that would lead to Halloween Town. I grinned and allowed myself to be lead up the snowy hill, the two of us waving back to Santa as the boys followed us as well.

We walked into the Square and stopped in front of the Doc who, surprisingly, was outside of his lab; Sora explaining what the robot had been doing. Finkelstein nodded as he exclaimed "Interesting! So the puppet wasn't stolen after all! It ran away on its own! In other words, my experiment was an overwhelming success!" I rolled my eyes, silently.

'_Success except for that little detail of it running around out of control but to quote a god 'details who needs 'em'. _

Sora's mouth twitched in a frown before he shook it off and continued with his explanation "Santa Claus thinks maybe it left because it was trying to find a heart."

Donald and Twilight nodded their agreement as the doc agreed "That's quite possible. Unlike my Sally, it wasn't equipped with a heart." Finkelstein turned his wheelchair and wheeled away, I raised an eyebrow at him as he reached the stairs and he pounded on a button that made the wheelchair go up the stairs so he could get into his lab.

Rolling my eyes I turned to Sora as he asked "But if it wanted a heart, why was it going around stealing all those Christmas presents?"

We turned to Sally as she piped in "Maybe because…presents are a way to give your heart to someone special."

She walked over as Sora put a hand on his chin taking in what she had said before spreading his hands open as he said "Hmm…when you put it that way, I feel sort of bad for it."

Bells ringing in Halloween Town was something that caused confusion for everyone so we immediately looked for the source and jumped when Jack landed on the ground a few feet away from us; Santa flying across the moon in his sleigh calling down to us "Happy Halloween!" We smiled as snow started to fall down on the town that hadn't seen snow in so long.

Twilight grinned and grabbed my hand spinning me around in almost a dance causing me to laugh quietly as Sally looked up quietly saying "What a nice present."

Jack stared at the sky spreading his arms wide in confusion as he said "I don't understand. There's no box! No ribbon tied in a bow!"

Sora smiled slightly as he explained to the denizen of Halloween "Jack, it's not about the box or the ribbons. It's about what's inside the box!"

Sally shook her head and contradicted the boy "No, Sora. What really counts…what's really special…is the act of giving the gift. To wish deep in your heart to make someone else happy." I twisted and stopped the impromptu dance that Twilight had started, slinging an arm around her shoulders watching Jack as he stared at Sally in wonder.

Jack placed a hand on his chin for a moment before exclaiming "Right…of course! Thank you, Sally, you're absolutely right. Wait! What's this? I feel so strange …so very happy!"

I raised an eyebrow as Jack raised his arms to the sky while Goofy said excitedly "Jack, that must be Sally's present!"

Jack placed his hands on his chest asking "Really? This wonderful feeling?" He moved forward and took Sally's hands into his own staring down at her tenderly crooning "Oh, Sally! You've given me the nicest present in the world! And I've nothing to give you in return. What would you like? Just name it. Absolutely anything."

Sally smiled and placed her hands on top of his own replying "The nicest present I could ever ask for, Jack, is just to be with you." Twilight and I chuckled at the expressions that the boys were giving the two Halloween Town citizens.

Jack grinned the widest that anyone had ever seen him cheerfully saying "You don't even have to ask for that." Jack pulled Sally up into his arms and jumped away before they began dancing in the middle of the square the rest of us watching them.

Sora tilted his head sadly saying to himself "Maybe I never gave her a real present after all."

Donald turned around curious asking "Who?"

Goofy clapped his hands on the boy's shoulders saying cheerfully "Aw, I bet Kairi would like most anything you gave her."

Sora gave a crooked smile as he said "I know. That's what made it so hard to decide."

Donald spread his hands re-iterating "It's not the gift; it's what's in your heart!"

Donald pounded his chest as Sora said quietly "My heart…"

Donald nodded and looked up at Sora saying "You bet, Kairi's like Sally!"

"How?" a very confused Sora asked.

Goofy smiled slightly as he explained "Well, as long as she can be with you, what else does she need?"

Twilight smiled as she said "You'd be surprised at how much just being there can mean to people." Twilight and I passed knowing glances as Sora stared at the dancing couple with a dreamy look. He woke himself up from his day dream and gave a sheepish laugh with a shake of his head before looking up as we left Halloween Town for the last time.


	34. Haunted

Back again. Classes, Finals, Family. Muses trying to take over my brain and get me to write their stories. Stuff. I'm tired so I'm gonna throw this chap up and let you get to it.

Shout outs: BAYALE, mecosman, sora0995, FireWolfHeart, KhAndTwilightFan15, KuroNeko513, HowYouRemindMe, TheBeginingsEnd, Jubilee, OrionRedde, Rein Walker, and Goofy-Goober3D.

Disclaimer: I don't own.

* * *

**Chapter 34: Haunted**

I sat down in my chair with a sigh and rubbed the corner of my eyes before allowing sleep to take over at Donald set in the settings for the Pride Lands, Twilight glancing my way as I allowed my mind to fade into the comforting darkness.

Twilight shook me awake as we were getting ready to head down. I sat up with a groan and slapped my cheeks to wake myself up, much to Twilight's amusement. I rolled my eyes with a small smile and stood up moving over to the door where Donald would teleport us out and change our shape. I closed my eyes so that I wouldn't be blinded as Donald cast the spell that would transport us down to the Pride Lands. Landing on my four paws I stretched out, getting used to the feeling of being a cat once again. Glancing around at the others I spotted Twilight shaking her white fur as if she were trying to get water off of her. We had landed in the Savannah which was not looking any better than it had when Scar had been in charge. My tail flicked in annoyance stirring up a small puff of dirt as blue eyes stared out at the dead land. My head shot up as Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed ran up to us skidding to a halt disappointment clear on their muzzles. Shenzi let out a disappointed sigh before she said "Oh, it's you guys. Man, we were hoping you were a meal."

My eyes narrowed slightly while Sora greeted them with a cheerful "Hiya!"

Banzai rolled his eyes before gruffly saying "Don't gimme any of that 'hiya' stuff! Thanks to you clowns, we're back to scavenging scraps for a living."

Ed laughed, like the insane hyena he was, as Shenzi turned around and started to walk away saying "C'mon, it's not that bad. I enjoyed that week-dead elephant we had yesterday."

Curious Sora tilted his head asking "Hey how's Simba?" Shenzi stopped where she was laughing much to the boys' confusion.

Banzai sat down explaining amused "We gotta laugh every time we hear that dude's name."

Shenzi turned around and rejoined her small group crooning "Ooh. Say it again!"

Banzai grinned and complied mockingly "Simba!" This started a whole new round of laughter which caused my ears to snap back angrily and stalk forward as the hyenas continued laughing, rolling on the ground.

A growl came from the back of my throat as I snapped at them "Enough!"

Shenzi blinked in surprise and stood up shaking her coat out before jerking her head towards Pride Rock angrily saying "Go on then, see for yourself. Simba is one wishy-washy king." My hackles went up as the two of us were staring each other down, the others looking between us worriedly. Twilight moved forward and bumped her head against my shoulder; I didn't take my eyes off of Shenzi but lowered my hackles and straightened from my slight crouch. Shenzi huffed and turned around jerking her head at her fellows before the three of them stalked away.

I turned my head to look down at Twilight who watched me questioningly causing me to chuckle saying "I normally like hyenas but really they should've gotten to the point." I turned my attention back to the retreating backs of the three steel grey hyenas before turning around to the boys who watched the two of us in confusion.

We turned to the turtle Goofy as he asked "Gawrsh, whaddaya think coulda happened?"

Sora shrugged and turned to Pride Rock saying "Well, let's go find Simba and see." We nodded and started to jog there, except for Donald who was in fact flying there winging high above us as a scout. We were just nearing Pride Rock when I twitched as a mass of darkness formed, Donald banking hard to land on my back with a thump. The darkness formed a fleeting, single solid image of Scar which caused us all to jump and Sora to run forward exclaiming "Scar!" The phantom vanished as Sora leaped through where it had been standing. Landing Sora glanced behind himself confused "Huh?"

Donald tilted his head from where he was perched on my back and asked "A ghost?"

I flicked an ear back at him, the only indication that I was paying attention.

Goofy grinned, ever cheerful, saying "We better tell Simba about this. Wonder if he's up there…"

I smirked and glanced over at him saying "Only one way to find out."

Sora nodded and turned back to the large rock formation muttering "Let's go." Twilight started jogging with me following close behind her while Sora charged up the slope.

We had made it to the base of the mountain when a Lioness raised her head asking "Have you come to see Simba?"

Sora nodded quickly explaining "We saw Scar's ghost!"

The Lioness frowned and shook her head muttering "An omen like that could only be foretelling the end of our pride. Yet…King Simba won't do a thing. I guess just being the son of the great King Mufasa doesn't necessarily mean he's ready to rule the kingdom himself."

Sora grinned and tried to encourage the Lioness, despite the feeling of all around discontent, "Trust me, Simba will think of something."

The Lioness's frown deepened as she shook her head saying "The time for thinking is past. We need him to take action…as his father would have done. He ruled with courage and pride. I remember it like it was yesterday…The mighty Mufasa…"

I rolled my eyes, clearly annoyed with the lioness causing the female to growl at me and me to simply flick an ear at her without care before she sank back into her depression while Sora encouraged "Simba'll do all that, too. You'll see!"

The lioness sighed and turned away muttering "I'm not so sure."

Her sleek form slipped away as she joined the other members of the pride further away while I sighed and muttered over to Twilight "That was a cheery conversation."

Twilight grinned and rolled her eyes at my sarcasm saying "It could've been worse."

I nodded with a mock frown on my tan muzzle agreeing with the white lioness next to me "Oh, yes. If someone says that it can't get any worse then they clearly aren't using their imagination."

Donald tapped my head with his beak saying "Let's go! Sora and Goofy have already headed inside."

I rolled my eyes once again and we headed into the cave where the depressed King Simba was laying in the dark his head turned towards us as he said "You came back…"

From my back Donald asked in concern "Are you okay?"

Goofy stared at the large lion in concern before stating "You don't look so good."

Sora smiled slightly before he suggested quickly, concern still clear for his friend "Hey, Simba. Why don't we team up and do something about that Scar ghost? Seems like everybody's worried about it. So, now's your big chance to show 'me what you're really made of!"

Simba stood up clearly angry and growled over at us "That doesn't concern you!" Sora jumped in surprise and everyone shot the young King a worried glance that noted the expressions and quietly apologized "Sorry…"

A sad Sora replied hesitantly "It's okay."

Simba frowned as he explained "I just wish I knew what my father would do."

Simba turned his attention back to us as Goofy said "But he's not here, Simba. It's all up to you now. And that means the important thing is what you're gonna do being the king. Not what your father woulda done."

Simba turned away reiterating "So you're saying…it's all up to me…"

'_It took you this long to figure that out?' _

Sora grinned and turned on the pep as he encouraged "See, there ya go!"

"Exactly!" We jumped as Timon and Pumba popped up out of nowhere and Timon continued "We know your dad was a great king, and all. But now it's you turn." We watched as Timon walked forward saying "Remember what I taught ya. 'You gotta put the past behind you.' It's time to go out there and show everybody things are gonna be just fine!"

I gave a silent sigh and shot Twilight a pleading glance, the white lioness only shooting back a small smile, while Sora continued the encouragement "Yeah, you can do it!"

Timon smirked up at the lion and wagged a finger in his direction stating "You gotta live for today!"

I raised a non-existent eyebrow as Pumba walked forward swinging his head happily saying "And find your own path!"

I laid down my head on my paws watching as Simba said more to himself than anything else "Live for today…And find my own path…not my father's…"

Sora's face broke out in a grin as he exclaimed "That's it!"

I flicked an ear back as I heard the paw steps as Nala walked in saying "I'm glad to hear you say that, Simba." We watched as Nala moved forward until she was standing next to her mate before turning to us and saying "Promise me you'll help Simba any way you can."

Timon cut in before anyone could say anything "As long as Sora handles the dangerous parts!" I couldn't help but chuckle at that while Sora nodded with an amused smile playing on his muzzle as well.

Simba smiled and turned to Nala lovingly as she told him "I'm counting on you, Simba…and so is our baby." Nala nuzzled her mate before he stepped forward with a renewed confidence which caused the boys and Twilight to rejoice, I just smirked confidently.

Timon moved forward slightly and shrugged saying "Great! Now we're going to have to babysit!" That comment startled a laugh out of everyone.

As the laughter died down Simba suggested "Let's go see Rafiki first. I'm sure he'll be able to tell us something about that ghost." I stretched as I got up and watched as Simba walked past me leading the way to the Stone Hollow.

Stepping through the eccentric baboon's entrance we glanced briefly at the painted walls and hanging gourds before turning our attention to the blue baboon that swung down from his perch above, staff in hand, laughing knowingly "Oh ho ho! The king… he is ready to be king?"

Simba nodded as he replied "I think so."

Sora looked up at Rafiki asking "Can you tell us about Scar's ghost?"

Rafiki shook his staff at the dark brown lion cub as he answered "Oh, yes…the ghost. A being with no body. It is created when the evil heart of Scar meets the hesitating heart of Simba."

Confused Simba asked "Hesitating?"

Rafiki smirked while Twilight and I shot him disbelieving looks, the three of us asking sarcastically "You thought you weren't?"

Simba threw an annoyed glance over his shoulder at us as Goofy commented "Gawrsh, that ghost sounds just like a Heartless."

Sora frowned as he muttered "Hm, I don't know."

Rafiki turned to Sora and nodded saying in his own mysterious way "You're right, you don't. But you do know it is upsetting. And it is upsetting the hearts of everybody in the Pride Lands. You may not know what it is, but it still IS. This world, it is full of many such things. And these things, a king must face. It is the test that has been set before you, Simba."

Simba's brow furrowed as he asked "That's all? Come on. You have to tell us more about the ghost…"

Rafiki spun around saying adamantly "No, not today! But the hyenas in the Elephant Graveyard may know more. Does not matter, though. There is little the Simba of late can do."

Sora frowned as he complained "Aw, don't say that! Not when he's ready to try!"

Rafiki sighed and shook his head muttering loudly "In his head, perhaps…but what about his heart?"

Simba shook his head and turned away saying to the brown cub next to him "Forget it, Sora. Let's head for the Elephant Graveyard." I watched as the others filed out, Twilight waiting by me before we glanced at each other and shrugged. We both agreed that Rafiki was right; if Simba's heart wasn't in the fight there was no way he would be able to win. I smiled slightly as Twilight bounced out of Rafiki's place and shook my head as she tackled Sora playfully as they headed towards the Savannah. I glanced over at Donald as he berated the two of them and a mischievous smile crossed over my features for a brief moment that Goofy noticed but couldn't say anything as I pounced on Donald pinning him gently to the ground as he gave an indignant, and very loud, quack. I chuckled as everyone else laughed the mood having lightened slightly and both Twilight and I jogged ahead of the others. I glanced back at our small group and sighed with a small smile and shook of my head.

Twilight glanced over at me and chuckled as she said "Well at least we lightened the mood a little; it was getting a little too gloomy for my tastes and I thought that was practically impossible what with Sora around." I smirked slightly and nodded my silent agreement. As we neared the Elephant Graveyard it was nearing dark…I wasn't even going to ask about the light torches that threw light over the paths.

Spotting the trio of hyenas, Twilight and I allowed the boys to pass us, Donald calling out "Hey! Wait!"

The three hyenas paused and glanced at each other before sighing and turning around to face us Benzai complaining "Aw, come on. Can't you guys just leave us alone?"

Simba straightened up demanding "Do you three know anything about Scar's ghost?" I rolled my eyes at the young lion king before me.

'_Really tactful Simba; way to be diplomatic.' _

Shenzi stared up at the lion confused muttering "Huh? Scar's ghost?"

I glanced over at Ed as the crazy hyena started laughing as if he knew something we didn't, all three of them turning and running off while Banzai called back over his shoulder mockingly "Maybe."

Sora's eyes narrowed instantly and he yelled "You do know something!"

The boys chased after the three hyenas and I looked over at Twilight as she said in a bored tone "Anyone else get the feeling that we've been sent on a wild goose chase." I flicked an ear back at her and shrugged before the two of us followed after the boys once again further into the Elephant Graveyard. My tail flicked in annoyance as the three hyenas had split up and the boys were trying to chase them down. Twilight jerked her chin up in annoyance placing barriers around where the three would run allowing them only the path that would get them cornered by the guys. Banzai, though, thought he would be smart and try to get past us…yeah I wasn't going to let that happen any time soon. Banzai ran straight towards us and straight into a portal that I had created; dropping him right in the middle of his companions as they backed up against a wall.

We glanced at each other and sighed before jogging up to the others as Banzai mocked "Oh no…I guess you caught us ALL."

Shenzi mocked asking "What're we gonna do?" Ed laughed hysterically but by that time we had learned to ignore the nut of the group.

Simba glared at the three and demanded angrily once again "Tell me about Scar's ghost!"

Banzai chuckled before mocking "Sorrrry. We don't know nothing'."

I rolled my eyes as Shenzi drawled "Ooh, wait! It's coming back to me! That's the one that only hangs out around fraidy cats. Right, Banzai?"

Simba growled deep in his throat before yelling "Enough!" I twitched as I felt a manifestation of darkness from behind me and turned, the others noticing and turning as well all of them getting into defensive stances at the buildup of darkness.

I glanced over my shoulder at Shenzai who teased "Must be a fraidy cat around here somewhere!"

I turned my attention back to the scene before me with narrowed eyes as Sora encouraged "Simba do something."

The young king didn't move as Scar's ghost taunted Simba "How does it feel to be king, hmm? Why, you must be a truly inspiring ruler by now." My eyes flicked over to Simba as he backed away from the manifestation which continued to speak "After all, you ARE the son of the great Mufasa." We watched as Simba turned tail and ran Sora calling after him but I had turned my attention onto the ghost which smirked smugly saying "Ah, Simba…running away as always."

We frowned disappointed at the king while Sora called after him "Simba!" My tail flicked in annoyance once again and I turned to glare at the offending appendage which so easily allowed my state of mind to be read while the hyenas laughed as they stalked off.

We glanced over at Goofy, who was still staring at where the King had run off to, as the turtle-dog said "Gawrsh, Rafiki was right."

Sora's brow furrowed in confusion as he asked "You mean, Simba's still unsure?"

Twilight frowned and stepped forward as she said "Seems that way. Sometimes the scariest things to fight are the ones where you can't touch your opponent."

I started walking forward, heading towards the exit of the graveyard, and saying "Plus with the added stress that the Pride is putting on him, I'm not surprised in a way that he is trying to run or that his heart just isn't in this fight." I stopped where I was and glanced back at the others asking "You want to help Simba, right?" They nodded and I smirked slightly as I continued "Then what are we standing around here for." As the boys ran forward ahead I frowned as I followed them out onto the Savannah, Twilight glancing at me in confusion. I shook my head and glanced over at Twilight as I said "I'm headed towards the Oasis-thingie."

Twilight skidded to a halt and stared at me gawping as she asked "You're not gonna tell the guys?"

I smirked and glanced at her sideways saying "You could always tell them for me." Seeing her expression of reluctance my smirk faded slightly before I continued "I need some time alone, Twi. Simba's emoness is getting to me and I need some time to rant on my own…besides I'm gonna probably be swearing up a storm."

Twilight sighed and nodded saying "Alright, I'll tell them what you're up to. Just…be careful." I smiled and nodded before taking off in the other direction to the Oasis. I managed to sneak past all of the Heartless that were patrolling the area and when that didn't work, well, I just ran like Hell. I knew Simba was suppose to be all depressing here but this was ridiculous, any fighter knows that if you're going to get into one you have to be able to steel yourself against everything else and focus only on the fight. All Simba was doing was defeating himself and if he didn't get his heart into it then he was going to lose completely. Without realizing it I had made my way into the Oasis and was now being stared at by a slightly amused Simba as I had apparently also been ranting out loud. I paused and looked over my shoulder, my eye twitching as I saw Simba laying there with a slightly amused smirk plastered on his muzzle. I sighed and forced myself to calm down as I said sheepishly, wondering just how much he had actually heard, "Hi, Simba."

The young king laid his head on his paws as I moved over to the edge of the cliff and sat down watching him silently. Simba's head jerked up as if he had just heard something exclaiming "Father…!"

I sighed as Scar manifested himself saying "Hmm. It seems even your daddy's abandoned you. How sad."

'_Alright then Simba, what are you going to do?'_ I watched as Scar stalked forward and Simba backed up drawing closer to me. I sighed and stood up, Simba's eyes fixed on the apparition. I put on a burst of speed slamming through the ghost, surprising Simba and the group who had just ran into the Oasis.

I whirled on the young king demanding "What do you think you're doing?"

Sora blinked while Simba went on the defensive "What do you mean?"

The boy's blinked in surprise as I snapped back at Simba "You're backing down! You're suppose to be leading the Pride and you aren't!"

Sora jumped forward trying to intervene but was cut off as Simba snapped back "What would you know?"

I stalked forward until we were less than a foot away from each other and hissed "I know enough. I've seen enough and I've heard enough to understand that this is your problem that you have to fix for yourself. No one is going to make this end unless it's you." Simba's head jerked up and he tried to stare down at me, trying to seem imperial but I returned the glare with ease, I had had enough of his whining. "When are you going to understand that you are not Mufasa?" I sighed and lowered my voice as I continued "You can only be you and it is _you_, Simba that has to lead the Pride. The dead can't lead and those that try lead the world into a never ending cycle of death." Simba blinked slowly while Sora and the others stared at me in confusion. My stare hardened as I asked "So are you going to stand around and mope the entire time or are you going to actually try something?"

Simba looked away as he said "I can't."

I clenched my jaw as I demanded "Why not?"

Simba declined to answer and my eyes narrowed, jaw clenching as Sora growled frustrated "Let's go guys, if he's not even going to try then there's no reason to stick around." I stared at Simba's back while the other's left Twilight nudging Goofy into motion.

I moved forward slightly so I was standing next to Simba staring out at the jungle and river below saying "You fought Scar for your home and you won. Now you're going to give it up to the dead without even trying? Tell me Simba, what was the point of fighting for it in the first place?" Simba flinched at the barb as I turned away and headed out of the Oasis. I glanced at the boys and Twilight hiding behind a log while the ghost manifested itself again, the boys taunting the king while Twilight tried desperately to stifle her giggles.

I smiled and fought off my own laughter turning back to Simba as he yelled "No!" Seeing him lunge for the ghost I smiled and shook my head slightly in amusement. The boys ran forward again singing Simba's praises to which he responded "You know, I'm really lucky to have friends who'll stand by me…and help me see clearly. My father…wasn't so fortunate."

Sora rolled his eyes muttering "There you go again."

Simba gave a small smile as he explained "What I mean is…Everyone here, and in the Pride Lands, wants me to succeed. Sora, Donald, Goofy, Twilight, and Ghost. Pumbaa, Timon, Rafiki…Nala. You all want what's best for me. But my father always had Scar lurking behind his back, trying to cut him down. I've got to make the most of my blessings, and rebuild this kingdom; after all if I don't what would have been the point in fighting for it in the first place."

My mouth twitched in a slight smile as he used my own words now but I glanced at Sora as he asked "Are you gonna say it, or do it?"

"Wait and see." Simba's response prompted a smirk out of me.

"Simba!" Timon's yelling had everyone turning to where the little meerkat was running towards us yelling "Simba! Come quick! There's a bazillion ghosts of Scar haunting the Pride Lands! Everyone but Nala high-tailed it outta there. And now she needs your help." We started to run past Timon and I rolled my eyes as the meerkat sighed and said "Our little Simba all grown up and finding his place in the world."

Simba skidded to a halt calling back to him "Nice try. You're coming, too!" Timon flinched but nodded, Twilight scooping him up so that he could keep up with the faster creatures that were running after Simba. The Pride Lands looked like it did when Scar was in charge, life-less and dark. We sped up as we crossed the Savannah heading towards the most prominent feature of the landscape, Pride Rock. Putting on a burst of speed Sora, Donald, Goofy, Twilight, and I headed up first; spotting Nala behind Pumbaa who was guarding the lioness despite his shaking.

Nala blinked when she saw us and asked "Where's Simba?" I smiled slightly and moved to the side, bowing my head, for once, as the others bowed to the young king who walked between us regally heading up to a very relieved Nala.

Simba's eyes narrowed as he glared at the ghost while saying "I'm back Nala." The ghost stalked up to Simba who stood his ground before snapping lowly "Get out!" The ghost vanished in a poof of darkness I sighed as Nala moved forward quickly meeting Simba in the middle and happily bumping heads together. It was then that the rest of the ghosts turned into streaks of darkness and started conglomerating in one spot. Simba turned away from the sight and asked "Are you with me?"

Sora smiled as he bowed once again answering "Now and forever, Your Majesty!"

I smiled and shrugged saying "Eh, why not." I smiled over at Simba, amusement clear on my face causing the young king to smile and nod at us, the group following him down into the Savannah where the darkness was gathering into one form. The Heartless that emerged from the darkness, honestly, reminded me of a plant-like, boney, gigantic, green elephant. I sighed and my eye twitched as the boys lunged forward attacking the thing while Twilight and I started to draw its attention away from them as they went to get at the driver.

I landed low and jumped to the side to avoid the Heartless as it slumped to the ground; the boys and Simba jumping from its back to join me and Twilight on the ground. I walked over to where the other's where gathering, favoring my right foreleg as I had managed to twist it in the fight. Twilight glanced over at me and threw a potion down in front of me so that the liquid inside of the bottle turned to gas and healed me. I raised an eyebrow at the girl asking "Where did you get that?"

Twilight grinned as she answered "The wonders of Hammerspace." I chuckled quietly understanding the fan term for the unlimited storage that video game characters seemed to have, though we left a very confused Sora in the dark. We turned out attention skyward as the heart vanished into the darkness to join Kingdom Hearts. We smiled and turned as Simba headed up to Pride Rock to join Nala where she was standing. The boys followed after him and after a moment we two went up to where we found Rafiki.

Sora watched Simba for a moment before saying to everyone "Simba seems fine now."

Rafiki laughed declaring "Ha! The king has returned! The Pride Lands will not forget King Simba's courage. Or the courage of those who fought beside him."

Simba turned away from where he was observing the Pride Lands and turned back to us asking "Do you think your quest will ever be over?"

Sora shrugged as he answered sadly "I don't know…but I think, as long as the Keyblade stays with me…I'll have to keep fighting."

We blinked and turned to Rafiki as he said knowingly "Ahh…The struggle never ends. That is the great Circle of Life."

I turned my head and chuckled as Sora asked childishly "Never ever?"

Rafiki stroked his beard saying "The secret to victory…is a strong heart." We all jumped as Rafiki started yelling "Go on, go on, go go then! Go on, get out! Yes, yes! It is time! Your fight continues…."

I backed away from the baboon and leaned towards Twilight muttering "I think he's lost it."

Twilight laughed as Sora said "Till we meet again, Your Majesty."

Simba smiled and nodded saying "I hope that's soon."

Sora nodded with a smile of his own before turning around saying "It will be, so long." Twilight and I smiled at the boys as they passed us before following them down the mountain with the friends we had made watching us from behind. Donald beamed us back up to the Gummi ship and we collapsed into the seats with audible groans.

Sora sighed and ran a hand over his face saying "I think we should head back to Hollow Bastion and see how those guys are doing."

I smirked as I leaned back saying to the ship in general "That's fine by me. What about the rest of you?"

Twilight nodded as she said "I say we should go for it. Same stops on the way?"

Sora leaned around his seat so he could see us before nodding quickly saying "Yep. So first stop Port Royal." I smiled and closed my eyes for the rest of the trip while everyone, who wasn't driving, dozed off until we reached the port city.


	35. Minerva's Chaos

**So, I'm not dead and I think you all deserve at least something of an explanation as to why I vanished. So this was my last semester of college which means that there was a massive project that I had to do. This kept me from doing anything creative, even to the point where I barely had time to do any of my other homework. I apologize for taking so long to get this story going again and thank you all for being as patient with me as you have. **

**Shout outs: Taeniaea, KhAndTwilightFan15, FireWolfHeart, Jubilee, kenegi, BAYALE, KuroNeko513, Ahntanya's-Hope, fldhckyd342, The resident cat, Crimson Elemental Alchemist, 4elementsfan4621, haliedaisy, obsessed-beyond-reason2001, Backyard Blackout, XionAmmy, and Vanessa Rowes.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters except Ghost and Twilight. **

* * *

**Chapter 35: Minerva's Chaos**

It was daytime! We actually got to see Port Royal during the day! It was a miracle….well not really I knew that they had to have a daytime at some point; it wasn't like Twilight Town where it was perpetual sundown but still whenever we came here it was night. On top of that it was peaceful, no pirate attacks and the Heartless were nowhere to be found which explained the current situation that we were in. The boys and Twilight had decided that they wanted to go and see Will, who was in his blacksmith shop and they were probably bugging the hell out of him. I don't know if they were or not because I wasn't with them I had decided that I was going to leave the poor man alone and headed up to the fortress.

You know for a military fortress the lack of guards was very surprising or they were just lax on security around here, though if you talked to Twilight she'd probably tell you that I was just good at finding blind spots in security systems, either way I still had made my way up to the memorial bell without any problems…except for one.

I was once again being grilled about being up here by one Commodore Norrington and it was starting to grate on my nerves and on top of that I don't think he realized that he'd done this before with the exact same results. Me ignoring him that is; I was rubbing my temples when I finally snapped at him, turning around and pointing a finger in his direction "Listen! We've been through this before! Back off already! If you don't want any one up here than put guards on the steps to stop people from walking up!"

He blinked slowly gazing at my finger before following the length of my arm up to my face before deadpanning as he said "Oh, it's you."

My eye twitched as I demanded "What's that suppose to mean?"

He ignored my question asking "Didn't you listen to anything I said the last time we had this conversation?"

My hand dropped back to my side as I answered simply "Not a single god damn word."

Norrington blinked stunned by the language before turning and calling to the two actual, continuously arguing, guards that were there "Misters Mullroy and Murtogg!" I rolled my eyes and propped my hands on my hips as the two red coat guards rushed forward and came to attention in front of the Commodore. I shook my head and returned to ignoring them turning to stare back at the sea, this spot really did have one of the best views there.

I glanced to the side as the two walked forward Murtogg saying "If you'll allow us to escort you away from the fort."

He was being polite about the order and I gave him a smile which caused confusion as I shook my head turning my attention back to the water below saying "This place has the best view around."

The two glanced at each other with identical frowns before reaching forward pausing as someone said "I wouldn't do that. You're liable to get hit if you touch her?"

I rolled my eyes and glanced over my shoulder at Axel who was standing there with crossed arms and a cocky smirk and asked "By me or you?"

Axel chuckled as he answered simply "Both."

I rolled my eyes once again and turned around with a small smile, my arms crossed in front of my chest commenting lightly "You have impeccable timing."

Axel's smirk grew slightly, as Murtogg and Mullroy looked between the two of us, and said "Not really."

My smile grew and I countered "So either you were there for a while just watching me like a creepy stalker or you were very lucky in your timing about getting here."

Axel frowned slightly muttering "Well when you put it that way…." I chuckled and shook my head at the man.

The two of us glanced at the guards as they shuffled uncomfortably and I raised an eyebrow at them before saying "Well I'm not un-escorted now so shoo. Go away." They huffed and both Axel and I rolled our eyes as they walked away, restarting their argument from before. I watched as Axel stepped forward until he was in front of me and I tilted my head up at him curiously, there was something off. "Is something wrong, Axel?"

He blinked and shook his head with a sigh, I raised an incredulous eyebrow at him causing him to sigh "I was…worried…that you might…"

I stared at him confused, Axel refusing to meet my gaze as I prompted "Worried about what?" He muttered something that I couldn't hear. I reached up, hesitatin g for a brief second, before gently touching his cheek with the tips of my fingers turning his face towards me confusion clear on my face as I asked again "Worried about what?"

His eyes flicked over to me for a brief second before quickly focusing away from me before he quietly answered "Worried…that you might've had second thoughts about saying 'yes' to a Nobody." I blinked in surprise, my mouth twitching slightly in a small smile.

I cupped his cheek and with a soft smile, one that so rarely visited my face, said "You never had to worry about that, Axel." He blinked down at me as I smiled gently up at him explaining "I follow my heart and my gut. You're a good man Axel, there are only three things you have to promise me to never do and I will stand by you through thick and thin."

Axel blinked again asking "What things?" I started to lower my hand but he placed his own over it leaning into it, my cool skin against his own unnaturally warm flesh.

I smiled slightly as I answered "One, never cheat on me. I will find you and I will castrate you with a rusty spoon."

Axel visibly winced muttering "Did you have to be that descriptive?"

I chuckled and ignored the question continuing "Two, never hit me or abuse me in anyway. Not only will I be after your skin for doing so the rest of my very large family will be and I can guarantee that it will not be a fun experience for you. And lastly…" I paused and removed my hand from his cheek, wrapping my arms around his thin frame causing Axel to blink in confusion at me as my forehead rested against his chest, "…no suicide moves. Ok?"

Axel stared down at me for a moment before smiling himself, wrapping his arms around me as well, burying his face in my hair as he answered "I think I can manage those three conditions fairly easily."

I chuckled, my arms tightening around him for a moment as I said "I'll hold you to that, you know."

I felt his grin as he answered his warm breath on my neck spreading goosebumps, "I know." Someone cleared their throat and we both glanced over at Norrington who was watching us with an unreadable expression. The two of us didn't move from our positions instead raising eyebrows at the man with identical expressions.

He rocked back on his heels with his hands clasped behind his back as he said "If you are done with your display of…affection I must ask you to leave the fort. Civilians are not allowed here." I barely chocked down Jack Sparrow's line, I suspected that humor was not in the Commodore's plan at the moment as he was likely to get fired soon anyways. I rolled my eyes and pulled away from Axel slightly, his arms refusing to let me go though.

I rolled my eyes, amused, and turned so that my back was up against his chest as his arms were wrapped around my waist. "Seriously, Norrington who shoved a stick up your ass? You need to relax a little every once in a while…and that probably wasn't the smartest thing to say." Norrington's face was progressively getting redder and I could practically see the steam coming from his ears as I continued "I think I'm gonna run now."

Axel chuckled quietly "That'd be smart." I took off running, jumping down to the next landing on the stairs with a laugh, Axel following quickly.

I glanced over at him as we ran into town "Catch ya later Axel!" He grinned and ran through a portal as I cut into an alley trying to shake off Murtog and Mullroy which wasn't all that hard, even for someone who didn't control the Darkness. As soon as the two bickering guards passed me I stepped out of the shadows that I had taken too; glancing down the alley that they had headed down before smirking and shoving my hands in my pockets as I walked into the crowds on the main streets heading back towards the inn that we normally occupied. My eyes widened slightly and I slipped through the door as a couple of red coats made their way through the street, calmly walking up the stairs; the trick to never getting caught anywhere was to act like you belonged there, it always seemed to work in my high school whenever I was without a pass and going through the hallways. Pushing open the door to mine and Twilight's room I raised an eyebrow at Twilight who was giggling at something that Demyx had just said that I missed; the two of them sitting on her bed. "Kids, I don't' even want to know." Twilight and Demyx jumped causing me to chuckle quietly before continuing "I'm surprised you managed to ditch the boys to hang out with your boyfriend."

Twilight and Demyx turned red both of them muttering "He's/I'm not my/her boyfriend."

I rolled my eyes and plopped onto my bed, my hands behind my head as I countered "Please. You two are an item; give up on trying to keep it a secret. I've known you two were a couple since after the Hollow Bastion battle."

Twilight and Demyx glanced at each other briefly before the girl asked tentatively "Do you really think… that we make a good couple?"

I turned my head over to them with a raised eyebrow stating "The two of you are so cute together, it's disgusting." The two of them laughed, Demyx leaning over to peck her on her cheek. I grinned as Twilight blushed even brighter as Demyx pulled back his eyes warm with affection for the young woman next to him. I turned my attention upwards towards the ceiling, my eyes narrowing slightly as someone knocked on the door. Sitting up I waved a silent goodbye to Demyx, who portaled away kissing Twilight on the forehead before stepping into the darkness.

Twilight stepped towards the door as I got up my eyes narrowing further as an English voice called through the wood "Open up in the name of the law."

I grimaced and placed a hand on Twilight's shoulder whispering to her "Act natural, I'll be nearby in case something happens." I glanced around the room; there was no point in actually using darkness for something as simple as this, pushing open the window I glanced outside. There was a stack of crates just outside the window that could be used to get to the roof of the next building from there I could roof-hop around the entire town from the looks of it. I glanced back half way out the window and threw a thumbs up at the stunned Twilight before grinning and launching myself through the window and onto the crates. I froze for a moment as the crates wobbled before jumping over to the other building, taking a couple of steps back I ran forward and jumped up to the roof of the hotel; silently thanking all those times that we had to chase after Sora.

* * *

Twilight glanced back at the window where Ghost had launched herself from and shook her head before turning back to the door as the people outside banged on it again causing her to call out irritably "Alright, already! I'm coming! Jeez." Twilight pulled open the door to reveal the two red coats who were standing there. Twilight tilted her head curiously and asked politely "Can I help you with something?"

Both red coats took in her appearance suspiciously, Twilight raising an eyebrow at the two of them questioningly causing one of them to ask, as their eyes scanned the small room, "Have you seen a young woman with dark blond hair dressed in brown come by? She is under suspicion of piracy?"

Twilight's eyebrows shot up in surprise before she furrowed them in 'confusion' before answering "No I haven't seen anyone like that around here, but if I do you'll be the second to know I'm sure."

The other guard tilted his head asking "The second?"

Twilight grinned up at the man explaining cheerily "Well obviously I'd be the first." The guards rolled their eyes and turned away, Twilight shutting the door behind them as they headed towards the next room, continuing their search. She turned away and strode over to the window sticking her head out of it and saying in general, as she didn't know exactly where Ghost had gone, "Are you going to explain why you're under suspicion of piracy or am I going to have to guess?"

"I pissed off Nortie that's all." Twilight looked straight up as Ghost stared down at her from the roof, her shoulder length sand blonde hair hanging around her head, it had grown a little bit since they had gotten there but both Twilight and Ghost had changed. The two of them had both gained muscle, Ghost had slimed down some, the two of them toning and working muscles that they hadn't even known they had before or hadn't used in a long time in Ghost's case. Almost a month of constant travel and fighting had shaped the two girls that no fitness trainer ever could have.

* * *

I waved Twilight out of the way before swinging into the room with a quiet thud. Twilight gave an amused smile asking "Nortie?"

I shrugged with a grin saying "Hey, I had to call him something, plus I think being called Nortie would piss the man off even more."

Twilight rolled her eyes muttering "You get the man any angrier you'll give him a heart attack." I laughed and shook my head at my friend in amusement before turning to the door as Sora and the boys walked in all of them looking bemused.

Both Twilight and I glanced at each other before turning to the boys as Sora explained "Apparently there's a pirate running around town but the description sounded awfully familiar we just can't place where we've seen the person before."

Twilight glanced over at me as she teased "Really? I thought that the description sounded familiar as well. Perhaps it's someone we've all met before."

I huffed and mocked glared at Twilight muttering under my breath "I hate you all." Twilight cracked up laughing at my tease and the continually growing confusion on the boys' faces. I glanced over at the boys and had to bite down on my bottom lip to keep from laughing my ass off as well at their expressions which were slowly but surely changing from confusion to indignation.

I shook my head as Sora asked "Everyone get enough rest or do we want to stay longer?" I raised an eyebrow at the boy before shrugging, I was good to go…it sort of helped that I was now apparently a wanted pirate so the faster we got away from Port Royal the better for me at least. Honestly, if I needed more sleep I could catch some on the sixteen hour trip to Disney Castle.

Twilight glanced over at my shrug before answering for herself "I'm ready at any time." Sora gave his trademark wide grin and we all turned to Donald so he could magic us up to the gummi ship.

* * *

Sleeping always seems to be a good way to pass the time, especially when you're trying to catch up on sleep due to being on a college student's schedule and hadn't been sleeping well over the past few days either. That was certainly the plan in the beginning yet as the only two who weren't keeling over from exhaustion Twilight and I ended up piloting the gummi ship all the sixteen hours to Disney Castle. As we stood on the threshold of the castle Twilight was yawning and I was using Sora as a post, my arms around his neck, and my head on his shoulder, dozing off as I was standing up. I had fallen asleep standing up before so it was nothing new to me but for Sora that was an entirely different story, as non-touchie feelie a person as I always seemed to be, despite the fact that I happen to like receiving and giving hugs, he did not expect me to ever basically hug him and force him to hold up about half my weight as I fell asleep. Both the queen and Daisy looked up at Twilight and I with small smiles, the queen gesturing to a couple of the servants saying "Why don't the two of you retire and get some rest. You seem awfully tired." A small smile and a quiet grunt were the only indications that I had even heard the queen's suggestion unlike Twilight's tired nodding, the girl slumping slightly causing Goofy to place his hands on her shoulders to steady her swaying form.

Sora glanced down at me as I mumbled "Oh, good. It's time to sleep. You can just put me anywhere." With that said I gave up trying to fight sleep off completely and relaxed, causing Sora to yelp in surprise as my knees gave out and he had to grab me to keep me upright. Twilight had fallen asleep leaning backwards into Goofy, both of the older teens asleep on their feet after almost 48 hours straight.

* * *

It wasn't until near three in the morning that I finally woke up, having been placed in the room that I had normally been using in these stops at Disney Castle. I glanced over at the candle that was resting on my bedside and flicked a hand, managing a small fire spell to light it and luckily nothing else. I sighed in frustration after about an hour of trying and failing to get back to sleep. Pushing myself up I got ready for the day, planning on spending some time wandering around the castle or heading to library; I had seen an interesting book the last time we were here. Finally ready I picked up the candle and headed into the dark hallways. I glanced around, the candle only lighting about three feet around me. I blinked at the silent halls; it was so unusual for the halls in Disney Castle to be dark and empty. Even during the day the halls always had some servant moving about the halls so to see them with no life about was actually somewhat…creepy. Shrugging off the feeling that something was going to jump out at me at any moment I headed towards the few places that I actually knew how to get to; the Library and the Throne room.

Finally reaching, what I had nicknamed, 'the infernal hallway of doom' which was really the hall that connected the Library to the Throne room to the Garden, I tilted my head curious as I spotted clear white light coming from under the door. I stepped towards it, instinctively silent out of pure habit, and lightly placed my hand on the door pushing it open gently. Peeking through I allowed a small smile to form on my face as I saw Twilight asleep, her head pillowed on her arms as she sat at the large desk in the middle of the room, a globe of light suspended above the table. I took off my trench coat and covered her with it, glancing at the book that she was resting on, raising an eyebrow as I saw that it was a book of prophecies. '_Now what is she doing with something like this?_' I managed to gently get the book out from under her without waking her up and settled down at the other end of the table, narrowing my eyes slightly as I directed the shadows like a funnel around the globe so that the light was directed towards me so I could read. The book was exceedingly old, the pages yellowing and dry. Glancing around the room and the shelves of where this book had been, one could tell that it had been buried behind multiple stacks of books and probably forgotten by the inhabitants of the castle…and apparently Merlin as the line 'Two shall come from a place distant from our own Light and Darkness shall spread afar' I glanced up at the title and raised an eyebrow, _Minerva's Chaos_. The only place that I had ever heard of a Minerva, in games at least, was Crisis Core. I leaned back and read through the entire prophecy, probably coming to the same conclusion as Twilight, she was far better at riddles than I was; this thing was talking about us.

_Minerva's Chaos_

_When once again the worlds have entered into chaos_

_Emissaries of the great Minerva_

_Two shall come from a place distant from our own_

_Light and Darkness shall spread afar_

_A shield, spear, and sword_

_Darkness shall be tempted by the shadows_

_To lose the steadfast heart_

_Temptation leading into betrayal and disaster_

_All shall be lost_

_Light shall find its courage to face darkness it has never known_

_Gaining in poise and valor_

_Balance shall be created in the eternal reaches of the universe_

_If one should be lost then doom shall befall upon the worlds_

_Hearts of valor and loyalty_

_Joined to the Kingdom in the sky_

_Would create fearsome creatures of darkness_

_All light replaced by ethereal midnight_

_Silent sacrifices offered to the dawn _

"Well that was incredibly vague and relatively unhelpful; all it told us was to not get killed…which would in general be the point in the first place." If there was anything else to the prophecy…thing it was lost, the next few pages had been ripped out of the book completely.

I glanced over at Twilight as she mumbled groggily "Isn't that how prophecies are though?"

I chuckled quietly saying "Get some sleep Twi, you need it."

She lifted her head up, blinking owlishly as I allowed some of the light to filter back into the room, before saying "Don't you need some sleep too?"

I smirked slightly and shrugged "I'll doze off in a little bit. Go to sleep Twilight." She mumbled something incoherently and snuggled her face back into the warmth of her arms. I smiled slightly and slumped in the chair I was falling asleep as well; prophecies weren't exactly the best reading around. I fell asleep but not before holding up and hand and clenching it in a fist extinguishing the light globe plunging the library into darkness.

* * *

I heard snickers, if they hadn't been boys than I would've called them giggles, opening one eye I raised an eyebrow at Sora who was making funny faces in front of me and a slumbering Twilight. I rolled my eyes and reached forward flicking the brunette in the back of the head saying "Just what in the multi-verse are you doing?" Sora just rubbed the back of his head with a sheepish grin causing me to give a small shake of the head with an amused smile. I pushed myself up out of the chair with a groan, cracking a stiff back with audible pops that made the boys' wince at the loud snaps that were coming from my vertebrae and various other joints, particularly my knees for which I completely and utterly blame my father for. I glanced at the group asking "We ready to go?" They grinned and nodded causing me to smirk for a moment, jerking my head over at Twilight saying "Why don't you wake her up while I get ready."

I walked out as Sora called over "'Kay." I waved a hand over my shoulder indicating that I had actually heard him. It wasn't long afterwards that I strode down the stairs with my hands shoved in my pockets, returning from my room where I had been getting ready with the various morning rituals. I was unusually alert this morning, but then again whenever I got little to no sleep I was always fairly alert in the morning; I have in fact been hyper at six in the morning before…let's just say that it confused the hell out of my parents that morning. I stretched an arm above my head getting ready for the five hour flight to Hollow Bastion. We were nearing the end of the journey and truth be told it was kind of sad.

I sighed as I lowered my arm down _'Who knows what'll happen next, I don't even know if we'll be able to stay here afterwards. I…I don't know what'd I'd do if given the choice to stay here or…go home.' _I frowned and shook my head trying to clear the pensive thoughts out of my mind. _'One step at a time, worry about the future after the multi-verse is saved…again.'_ I spotted the boys and waved with a grin at them down the hall, they waved back with grins. I allowed a small fond smile that they couldn't see from all the way on the other side of the hall, to form on my face. We had been together for, what felt like; so long it was hard for me to imagine life without them again. Shaking my head I moved down the hallway so that we could get the final leg of our journey together started.


	36. Hollow Bastion is No More

**Here's another chapter for you guys. **

**Shout out: SpringBorn**

**Disclaimer: Same as all the last ones. **

* * *

**Chapter 36: Hollow Bastion is no more**

Everyone was happy to be back in Hollow Bastion, if the gummi ship was the travelling home for the group Hollow Bastion was the base that they would always return to. Just as Traverse Town had once been to Sora and the others. I raised an eyebrow as Sora stopped and tilted his head with his arms crossed as some Soldiers ran across the rooftop the boy commenting "Wait a sec…I thought everything was supposed to be under control here!"

We shrugged and turned to look at the town's defense system that had popped up as Donald exclaimed "Hey, look!"

They watched the glowing orb for a moment before Sora said, concern lacing his voice, "Must be Organization XIII again. We better go see Leon." He glanced back at the rest of us and we nodded in agreement heading further into town towards Merlin's house; the boys stopping to talk to Uncle Scrooge due to the fact that he had recreated Sea Salt ice cream, all of us getting some and proclaiming it to be very good. I could certainly understand why Roxas loved the stuff so much, it was addicting. Sora had three bars and probably would've had more if Donald hadn't started yanking him into movement. Both Twilight and I laughed at the boy as he tried to reach for another bar, protesting, as Donald pulled him away trying to get him back on track with the important things.

I shook my head as the duck shot a pleading glance over at me and Twilight and said "I think Leon can handle the place for fifteen minutes without us rushing to him."

Donald huffed and let the boy go but I snagged onto his arm and started dragging him along "Wha? But you just said?"

I glanced over my shoulder at Sora saying "Yes, but we really don't need you on a sugar high if Leon actually does need your help…which knowing your luck he does." Sora grinned and scratched the back of his head sheepishly before twisting around so he wouldn't have to walk backwards. Donald had moved ahead of us so as we rounded the corner to Merlin's place he was the one that almost got hit by the rouge claymore causing the duck to let out a surprised yell. The lot of us gave surprised yelps as Heartless that should've only been in the computer popped up, my sword appearing in my hand as I asked, feigning ignorance, "Anything special I need to know about these guys?"

Sora glanced over his shoulder at me with a frown, his concern doubling that something was wrong, and shook his head saying "Just beat 'em up, like the rest of the Heartless. The only thing though is…" He had to stop short to parry one of the computerized, black and yellow, Heartless that jumped him. I swept up and sliced into the creature forcing it to face back into oblivion, Sora continuing as if nothing had happened even I was taking this fight very easily, "…they shouldn't be out here. The only time I've seen these Heartless was when we were in the Castle computer." I raised an eyebrow at Sora, spin kicking another Heartless that had come up behind me sending it flying only to be met with Goofy's shield. I blinked in confusion at the fact that there were no longer any Heartless attacking us and shrugged as I let my sword vanish, the silver and red bracelet reappearing around my wrist. This fight had been short-lived and easy…which was unusual to say the least, normally they usually posed at least a little bit more of a challenge.

I glanced over at Sora as he caught my eye and I shrugged with a slight smirk stating "Well not all fights can be hard." He laughed in response getting odd looks from the others, who hadn't been paying any attention to our conversation.

"Come on in!" We all jumped at Yuffie's sudden appearance, not having noticed the girl walk out of Merlin's house.

Sora let out a slow breath as he tried to regain control over his racing heart before asking "Wait just a second…What happened to this place?"

Goofy tilted his head as he stated the obvious, as he normally did though sometimes one would wonder what we would do without him and those obvious statements, "Didn't that Heartless look like the ones from Tron's world?"

Yuffie, frowned slightly as she insisted quickly "C'mon, just get inside!" We glanced at each other and shrugged, following the hyper ninja into the house to see Cid, as per usual, typing furiously at the computer. This time was different though, I could practically feel the tension coming off the man as Yuffie urged him "Hurry up, Cid!"

The man huffed "Give me a second!"

We blinked in surprise at Merlin as he too insisted "Confound it! Hurry!" I raised an eyebrow at the old wizard; Merlin wasn't one to insist for someone to hurry it up unless it was important.

We turned back to the blonde mechanic as Cid growled "Why, you…!"

Sora walked forward as he asked "What's going on?" Cid turned around as Twilight and I moved forward, Twilight headed towards a chair while I moved to look over Cid's shoulder at the computer screen.

The relief was evident in the older man's voice as he said "Talk about yer good timin'!"

I glanced back as Yuffie explained "The MCP is wreaking havoc inside the computer." I turned back to the computer screen and blinked, I was no experienced hacker and the rate at which the text, filled with computer jargon, was moving almost made my head spin…though I did understand some of it; having a cousin and friends who were computer programmers apparently did help every once in a while.

Cid glanced over at me for a moment as I tilted my head, trying to make sense of what was being said on the screen, before the man told us "Accordin' to Leon, anyway…He went on over to Ansem's study to find out what all the ruckus was about. Turns out the MCP is using the data in that computer to crank out Heartless. The MCP's been messin' around with the town's control system, too."

I propped my hands on my hips, leaning back slightly as Yuffie asked drily "That MCP sure doesn't know when to quit, does it?"

Cid held up his hands saying "That's a computer program for ya."

I glanced down at him, finally being able to make some sense of what he was doing, "That also explains why you've been puttin' this little program together."

Cid looked up at me and nodded, he was about to say something but Sora interrupted him, saving me from the hacker rant that I could just tell would've happened, "How's Tron doing?"

Cid's mouth turned into a grim line and he shook his head as Yuffie explained "We can't reach him. We figure he must have been forced onto the game grid."

Cid nodded as he stated grimly "And it don't sound like a particularly fun game, either."

Donald made a sympathetic sound as Sora nodded to himself resolvedly saying "We'll go check on Tron."

Cid's mouth turned up slightly and he lost a little of the tension and grimness that had been consuming the man as he said "Thanks, kid. We're puttin' together an MCP Eradication program. I got a hunch it's almost finished, too."

Merlin crossed his arms and huffed irritably "Well, I hope your hunch is right for once!" Cid threw a dirty look over at the old wizard and I had hunch myself that if Sora wasn't here Cid would've been swearing up a storm at the old man; for whatever reason Sora had the power to make people cut back on swearing…it certainly worked on me.

Yuffie ignored the silent exchange between the two older males and said "Listen, we're gonna need Tron's help when that Eradicator's completed…"

Sora grinned and nodded saying "Don't sweat it. We'll make sure to tell Tron!"

Merlin turned to us and wagged a finger "Remember, boys and girls….we're counting on you."

I rolled my eyes at the old man while Sora nodded with a wide smile "Roger!" Donald and Goofy just nodded at the man though I could see a hint of indignation in Donald's eyes at being treated like a child by Merlin, I wasn't so happy about it myself either though we both covered up our irritation with small smiles. We headed out; I gave a small wave over my shoulder to the people inside as Cid got back to work on his program.

* * *

We had just reached the Postern when a voice rang out "Liars!"

Sora stepped back confused as to where the voice came from "Wha…?"

He blinked and looked down at the pixies that floated before him, Rikku fluttering up pointing an accusing finger at the boy "Leon doesn't have any treasure!"

Paine with her arms crossed glanced at us sideways as she said monotonously "And we fought for you guys."

Goofy looked down at Donald anxiously "Donald…?"

The duck waved his arms briefly as he exclaimed "Well, I had to tell them something!"

I tilted my head curiously as Yuna placed a fist under her chin saying quietly "I don't see how we're gonna work this out."

Sora tilted his head as he questioned "So what should we do?" I raised an eyebrow as the pixified Gullwings got together to have a conference, I was able to catch a few words here or there but I wasn't really all the worried about it.

They came back and Yuna clasped her hands behind her back as she grinned up at us saying "We're just going to take YOUR treasure."

I rolled my eyes as Sora and the boys gasped, glancing over at Twilight, we grinned at each other as Sora exclaimed "But we don't have anything!"

Paine raised an incredulous eyebrow at the boys asking "You sure?"

I blinked as Rikku circled around Sora saying "Hm…let's take a look."

She circled around both Donald and Goofy before coming over to me and Twilight; I just raised an eyebrow at the pixie sphere hunter as she flew back to her companions saying "Hey Yunie, I took a good look and sure enough…"

The boy's tilted their heads curiously as Rikku whispered something in Yuna's ear, the girl grinning and turning towards us proclaiming cheerily "Okay, we've decided! The Gullwings are taking all your items!"

Sora's jaw dropped and he lurched forward, his arms spread open as he pleaded "You've gotta be kidding me!"

Yuna pouted muttering "Oh, foofie."

Rikku dropped shaking her head, her arms limp at her sides complaining "This stinks!"

Paine rolled her eyes and in her stoic way stated drily "So not cool…"

Sora scratched the back of his head trying to explain "Look, sorry we tricked you, but…"

Paine cut him off with a sigh saying "Forget about it. Leon told us the whole story. He said your journey's been pretty rough."

Yuna gave a gentle smile, one that came from her summoner days, explaining "So it wouldn't really be right if we took your things."

Rikku grinned and pumped a fist into the air proclaiming "We'll root for you. Here this is from us." She raised a hand and with a poof a treasure chest, the one thing other than trouble that was irresistible to Sora, appeared a few feet away.

Yuna spun and grinned waving at us "Bye! Good luck on your journey!" I laughed as the three of them posed in their YRP stance and vanished in what looked like mini-pyreflies. Sora grinned back at us in relief before heading over to the chest and opening it open to pull out another keychain.

I grinned and shook my head at the boy as he shoved the thing into his hammerspace pockets while I commented lightly "You're gonna have one large collection of those things by the time you're done with this trip." Sora laughed and nodded in agreement as we headed out of the postern and towards the castle.

* * *

Getting welcomed by a gunblade to the face is not a fun experience; believe me I would know as that's exactly what we were greeted by when we opened the door to Ansem's Study. I had my hands up in a second drily stating "Halt. We come in peace." I heard Twilight snort from behind me, Leon raising an eyebrow at me as he lowered the weapon and I stepped aside letting the others to enter the room as well.

Aerith stepped forward explaining the tight security, "You can't talk to Tron if this room gets taken over."

I just smirked and shrugged in understanding as Leon shot me a small apologetic glance before asking "Did you check in with Cid?"

Sora nodded as he answered easily "Uh-huh."

Leon raised an eyebrow asking "And the Eradicator?"

Donald held up a wing with a grin stating "It's almost done."

Aerith clasped her hands together in front of her excitedly exclaiming "Great! Say, Leon, why don't you go work with Cid? I have this place under control."

Leon turned to her, a hint of worry tingeing his face, as he asked "Are you sure? All by yourself…?" The flower girl shot him a miffed look that had him backtracking as fast as he possibly could "…Er, sorry. It's all yours."

She grinned and I stifled my chuckles as Sora asked Leon, who looked like he wanted to escape through the door, "How's Tron?"

Relieved for a subject change he shook his head saying "We still can't get in touch with him. Maybe you guys should give it a shot."

Sora shook his head and said "No, we'll just go talk to him in person."

I rolled my eyes as Leon ignored the fact that that was what he had been asking Sora to do in the first place by replying "Then I have a favor to ask. When you find Tron, could you tell him to come to the I/O tower? That's where we'll upload the MCP Eradication program."

Goofy nodded and reiterated to make sure he got it right "The I/O tower. Got it!"

Leon gave an acknowledging nod saying "Thanks. And watch your backs." They nodded and we watched as he left the room; I wiggled my fingers in farewell as Twilight and the boys headed towards the computer room, Twilight practically skipping there. She was obviously looking forward to the lightcycles…I didn't even want to be on the same world as Twilight and lightcycles which explained why I was staying behind.

I glanced over at Aerith, once the others had vanished into the other room and we heard the laser revving up, and asked the pink clad girl "How much you wanna bet that Cid and Merlin are still fighting?" Aerith laughed quietly and gave a gentle smile towards me as I settled down in one of the chairs prepared to wait for the others to return.

* * *

It couldn't have been more than twenty minutes when Leon returned, disk in hand. By this time though I was lounging in the chair, old habits dying hard as I leaned back on the back two legs balancing precariously there, Aerith was sitting on the desk idly flipping through some papers there. He glanced at the two of us asking "Anything happen?"

Aerith shook her head as I leaned further back with a sigh saying "The only interesting thing that happened was I tried to get Aerith to make paper airplanes…she said that maybe I was a little bored." Leon raised a slightly amused eyebrow and shook his head and hurried into the computer room. I dropped forward and followed after him with Aerith close behind.

The man immediately began to type on the computer faster than I had ever seen him do previously, everyone ignoring the deep computerized voice as it said "Warning. User control is terminated indefinitely."

I raised an eyebrow and glanced up at the ceiling as I said "Oh, shut up."

I turned back to Leon as he slammed his fist against the keyboard exclaiming quietly "No good!"

He straightened up as Aerith stepped forward saying "Leon, let me try." He paused momentarily and you could see the internal debate going on inside his head before the 'eh, why the hell not', side won and he nodded handing her the disk.

She took it with a small nod as the computer started talking again "This is your final warning. Stop at once."

I laughed as Aerith put the disk into the drive with a cheery "Bon appétit!" Propping her hands on her hips she scolded "Don't talk with your mouth full." Leon placed a hand on his forehead in…I couldn't really tell if it was exasperation or embarrassment but it was something.

I was still laughing as the computer demanded "What…what are you loading?" Aerith grinned and turned back to Leon who crossed his arms with a small smile before the flower girl turned to me, the two of us high fiving with wide smiles on our faces.

I rested an arm on her shoulder asking "You think it worked?"

Leon shrugged as he stared at the computer stating "We'll just have to wait and see." I shrugged and turned back to the computer with a neutral expression; waiting was something I could do. I glanced briefly over at Leon as he left and gave a small smirk in his direction before moving towards the back wall so I could lean there and continue waiting while Aerith moved so that she stood in front of the keyboard.

It wasn't but a moment later that a noise came from the computer and Yuffie ran in saying "Things are settling down in the town! The only Heartless left anywhere are the local variety. And it looks like there are fewer than before."

Aerith nodded and raised a hand as she said "Now if we can just get those four back in one piece…" I grinned as the transfer system started back up again and pushed off the wall as they reappeared back into the flesh and blood world. Both Yuffie and Aerith grinned Aerith clasping her hands in front of her happily stating "You're here!"

Yuffie still grinning greeted "Welcome back!"

I tilted my head curiously at his sad expression as he nodded, pausing for a moment before asking "How's the town?"

The ever cheerful Yuffie was the one who answered enthusiastically "A-okay!"

Aerith going on to say "Not a single trace of the MCP, either. Everything's back to normal. We made it."

Noticing his expression Yuffie walked up to Sora leaning towards him so that she could peer up into his face asking concernedly "Hey, why the long face? What happened?"

Sora jerked back in surprise as the ninja wagged a demanding finger in his face as Donald answered sadly "Tron just disappeared."

Sora stared at the ground as he continued "And he promised we'd see him again…" I stepped forward and ruffled the boy's hair comfortingly causing him to glance over at me before a very familiar alarm went off causing almost everyone to jump, Twilight and I being the exceptions.

Aerith spun around to the computer exclaiming "What's happening?"

I tilted my head as the alarm stopped and a different computer voice, one that sounded a lot friendlier, came on "Greetings, friends. System is up, and ready for User input."

I grinned at the shocked smiles that appeared on the boys' faces as they all called "Tron!"

The computer, apparently Tron, practically ordered "Stay in touch."

Sora nodded in agreement "Yeah!"

I watched as Donald ran up to the keyboard accidently typing on the keyboard causing Tron to exclaim "Hey, stop that! It tickles!"

Goofy turned to Sora with a confused look, as I bit my lip to keep from laughing, the bi-pedal dog asking "Tron is ticklish?"

Sora grinned and Goofy laughed at the boy's mischievous expression, Sora stalking up on the computer and started to type away as he teased "How 'bout this!"

I couldn't help myself and started laughing outright as Tron giggled pleading with the teen "Please stop that!"

The boys laughed and Twilight joined them in their torture of the computer while Yuffie pointed at them saying "I think Tron's been hanging around those guys too much."

I raised an eyebrow asking sarcastically "No, really? What was your first clue?" She spun around and stuck her tongue out at me, only getting a grin in return Aerith all the while giggling in the background at everyone's antics.

We all paused as a still giggling Tron begged "W-wait, wait just a moment. I want to show you something I dug up from the system archives. You can see the town back when it was first built." The screen lit up and Twilight and the boys said their goodbyes before everyone headed outside to the postern. We all gasped as we spotted the beams of light shooting up into the sky and the rain of magical particles, that looked like very shiny snow, fell from the sky. I raised a hand up to catch one of the falling bits and grinned as it floated above my hand. I glanced over at Twilight and laughed as I saw her trying to catch a particle on her tongue.

I let my bit go and turned to Aerith as she said to Sora "You know, this town had another name once." He looked up at her curiously and she smiled and turned to stare up at castle as she said "Radiant Garden." I grinned and turned to look up at the castle myself, I could certainly understand a name like that for this place.


	37. Silver Haired Swordsmen

Hey guys, thanks for being incredibly patient with me. I'm not gonna bore you with the excuses and let you instead get right into the story.

Shout outs: mauralucky7, FireWolfHeart, SpringBorn, Taeniaea,obsessed-beyond-reason2001, BAYALE, BabyBumblebee17, Vanessa Rowes, Jubilee, RavenHeartSienna, and majestic ocean melody12

Disclaimer: Ownership has not changed.

* * *

**Chapter 37: Silver haired swordsman**

Why we were wandering around Radiant Garden, aimlessly mind you, I will never know but the place that Twilight and I had followed Sora to was the one place that neither of us really wanted to go. He had led us to the Dark Depths and who did we find standing there but the General himself, Sephiroth. I grabbed onto Sora's shoulder as he walked up behind the man pulling him back as Sephiroth turned around asking "What is Cloud doing?"

Sora shrugged answering "Beats me." The silver haired man's eyes scanned the group of us, taking in our various expressions noting that recognition and wariness were truly only present in mine and Twilight's expressions.

He turned back to Sora with a small 'Hmph' and pulled out his long sword asking "By the way, you five…Who are you?"

The tip of the sword almost touched Sora but the boy jumped back summoning the Keyblade and I stepped in front of the brunette protectively leveling a glare at the elite former SOLDIER as Goofy stated his shield out, "I'm not sure we should tell ya."

Sephiroth raised a single silver brow as he observed the sword in Sora's hand saying "Well…That's an interesting sword you're carrying."

Donald waved his wand at the tall man yelling "It's the Keyblade!"

Sephiroth allowed a small smirk to form on his face for a brief moment before commenting "I see…So that's a Keyblade. And I suppose you must be its chosen wielder."

Sora growled and challenged "So what if I am?"

Sephiroth's smirk returned as he replied "I wonder if it won't change its mind…once I defeat you. Show me your strength." He lunged forward my blade appearing in my hand as I deflected the blow, the strength behind it forcing a grunt from me and I quickly disengaged; dodge rolling away from him only quickly getting to my feet to have to slam my blade to the side skidding a few feet back as my weapon and Masamune connected. I growled and strained for footing but couldn't find any, my eyes narrowing slightly at Sephiroth's small arrogant smirk. Sora charged forward getting Sephiroth's attention away from me so I could regroup and get away from the cliff edge. I lunged forward my blade crashing down on his before I twisted out of the way to avoid a hit. Donald was casting magic like crazy but it seemed to barely do anything against the man and Twilight was trying to attack him but she was continually being blocked.

My eyes widened slightly as he took an all too familiar pose, after trying and failing to beat him about twenty times I would know it by now, and yelled "Hit the deck!" We dropped to the ground and the attack flew over us. It was barely past us and I was already scrambling to my feet so that I could block an oncoming attack that was directed at Sora. I grunted at the force behind the blow but only gave a few inches this time. I hissed in pain as Masamune sliced open the front of my left forearm that I was using to brace against him, his superior height and weight taking advantage of my smaller size. I gritted my teeth and refused to give way as the others stood up.

He smirked saying "You seem to be very protective of that boy."

I growled under my breath before retorting "Shut it, Sephy."

His eyes narrowed as I used his fan nickname and I jumped back as I heard Twilight yell "Move!" A spear of light shot over my shoulder and blasted into the man, the explosion knocking him back a few feet sending up a lot of dust. I crouched down in a defensive stance Sora moving to stand next to me as tense as a coiled spring. We jumped to opposite sides as Sephiroth sprung forward through the dust intent on slicing us in half. Twilight yelped and a barrier sprung up before her and Donald stopping Sephiroth's attack on them as both Sora and I charged at the man. He swept around his own weapon clashing against our own. He swept his blade up, disarming us but opening himself up to attack and taking a page out of Tifa's book I covered my hands with Thunder spells and slammed my fists into the man, ending with an uppercut to the chin, the force of the spells and blows knocking him back a few steps. It was only for a second or two but it was enough for Sora to reclaim his weapon. I ducked and he lunged over me slamming into Sephiroth once again. Goofy rushed forward in a Tornado attack allowing Sora to back off for a short period of time as I summoned my weapon back to me. I let out a slow breath so I could regain control of my breathing rate before jumping back into the fray, shooting past Goofy as he was knocked back. Using the momentum that I had and Sora as a distracter, I slid under Sephiroth's sword and sliced deep into his side before slamming a dark orb into the newly made cut making him grunt as he was blasted back a few feet. Everyone was starting to wear down, Sephiroth was no easy opponent, but we did the only thing we could do and that was get back up and continue fighting; this was no game with a reload. Twilight stopped next to me and I pushed myself up off the ground. Glancing at each other we nodded and placed our backs to each other my right arm and her left arm out stretched, our respective powers gathering in our palms. We watched as Sora was knocked back into Goofy and Donald before launching our attacks. Two spears, one of light the other of darkness, arching towards Sephiroth's chest both of them slamming into him. We gasped and I slumped forward as Twilight dropped to her knees, a barrier springing around her as I stumbled forward towards the boys. As I moved my steps regained their confidence and I jogged up to them. We had… sort of…accidentally knocked Sephiroth off of the cliff, so we had a second or two before he got back up to where we were. Sora looked up at me and blinked, he had seen me serious but my eyes were hard and my face was stony.

My features softened slightly as I glanced down at him asking "You alright?"

He nodded and pushed himself up off the ground answering "I'm alright. You?"

I blinked slowly my eyes scanning the area, Sephiroth did after all have this notorious habit of showing up where you never expected him too, as I answered "I'll live." Sora blinked in confusion at the answer before letting out a startled yelp as I grabbed onto his shoulder and practically threw him to the side. I twisted just barely missing getting run through, the back of my fist connecting with the side of Sephiroth's neck hard. I raised an eyebrow as I jumped back, our attacks seemed to be doing more damage than they had been before. A little more and we might just be able to win this. Sora rushed forward again with me following close behind swerving to the side so I could get at him from beneath his guard. He blocked my blow but got hit by Sora.

I blinked as Sephiroth jumped back, landing a few feet away from us, his eyes scrutinizing Sora, Twilight, and I before he said "What an intriguing power…"

Sora managed to angrily retort, still expecting an attack, "How'd you like that?"

I straightened up out of my crouch as Sephiroth brushed his shoulder off dismissively saying "I admit you're very skilled…But apparently, Cloud is the only one who can eliminate me."

Everyone straightened up as Sephiroth turned around, ordering over his shoulder "Tell Cloud to come here. Tell him Sephiroth is looking to settle things." Sora's eyes narrowed and he stalked away from the cliff side, his eyes watching the man cautiously. He followed the others away from the battlefield but paused as he noticed I hadn't moved from where I was, my eyes narrowed at the man. I glanced at Sora for a brief moment and sent him a small nod, telling him silently to go without me. His eyes narrowed slightly and he reluctantly left as I shot a look at him. Once Sora was out of sight I glared at Sephiroth's back, the man glancing over his shoulder at me. I had seen that intrigued look of his, it could only mean trouble.

I glared at the man ordering "You leave the kid out of whatever it is you're planning."

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow at me, turning around asking "And if I don't?"

I growled "Then I will hunt down your reincarnating ass and make you wish you had."

Sephiroth gave a small amused snort as I turned and walked off pausing as he said "Darkness is not meant to side with the light."

I glanced over my shoulder slightly and retorted coolly "Darkness will choose for itself who it decides to protect." I walked away from the cliff leaving the smirking man behind. Out of his sight, I gritted my teeth a hand hovering over the slice in my arm as blood ran down my hand and dripped to the ground. The others would be looking for Cloud I knew so I headed towards the Marketplace. I had to stop at the Burrow though, the wound was worse than I had thought it was, adrenaline high preventing some of the pain from seeping through my nerves. I glanced up, from my seat on the rubble, as footsteps came from the Marketplace and a familiar blonde walked into the Burrow his blue eyes glued to the ground contemplatively. He glanced up at me and I grinned at Cloud with a slight wave. "Heya, Cloud. Long time no see." He nodded silently, his eyes falling to my arm. They widened slightly and his long legs covered the ground quickly between the two of us. His hand hovered over the wound for a moment, his eyes narrowing slightly in concentration. I blinked as he placed a Cure spell over the wound, the deep slice stitching itself back together leaving a long scab on my arm.

I raised an eyebrow questioningly at him to which he explained "Materia can be useful at times."

I chuckled, already feeling the effects of the spell on my conscious, before asking "So you're going to face your past?"

The blond nodded solemnly "It's time I defeated Sephiroth." I smiled and reached up pulling the taller man into a hug, surprising him. I ended the one-armed hug just as abruptly as I had started it.

Leaning back I said "Good luck and be careful. I know some people who'll kick your ass if you get yourself killed and I'm one of 'em." Cloud blinked and I could see the faint smile that was playing on his lips. I gave a tired sigh, the fight and the spell catching up to me, relaxing against the rubble of the Burrow. Cloud straightened up and looked down at me for a brief moment before I waved him off saying "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. You go…and do what you have to do." Cloud's eyes softened slightly and he nodded, turning away and heading towards the Dark Depths to face his past. I closed my eyes as he left my view and breathed "Be careful, Cloud."

* * *

I opened a single eye as a familiar, cocky, voice, one that I loved, said "You really like this spot but you probably shouldn't be falling asleep out in the open." I chuckled quietly and shook my head as Axel walked over to me, sitting down next to me and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. I leaned into him with a contented sigh, relaxing into his gentle embrace before hissing and sitting up as the scab on my arm tore partially open.

I glanced down at it swearing under my breath "Dammit."

"What's wrong?" Axel's concerned question caused me to look up at him as one of his hands reached over to my arm carefully bringing it towards himself so he could get a look. His eyes widened as he saw the long gash on my arm and he asked "Just how old is this wound?"

I glanced up, biting the side of my cheek as I thought about it before answering "About…fifteen minutes." His brow furrowed and he made a sympathetic sound in the back of his throat before releasing my arm, there was really nothing he could do about it. I glanced up slightly and raised an eyebrow at the pity I saw in his green eyes. It was touching that he cared about me as much as he did but I was never one for pity; this time though I'd let it go I was too tired to get into trying to convince him that I was alright. I leaned back and into him, allowing the blood soaked sleeve to rest on my lap, giving a tired sigh before muttering "You should probably go, so that you don't get caught." He looked down at me and blinked, I had fallen asleep. He brushed a couple of strands of hair away from my face with a small smile. The smile grew slightly as I turned and snuggled into his warmth, my head on his chest. Axel gave a small sigh and picked me up, careful of my arm, carrying me into a portal that would lead to the restoration committee's front door. He set me down gently onto the ground next to the door, a small fond smile forming on his face before he straightened up and rapped quickly on the door. He portalled away as the door was opened by an irritated Cid. The man growled slightly as he glanced around not seeing anyone before looking down and spotting where I was. He pulled out his cigarette in confusion and knelt down next to me, tilting his head curiously as I slept on a small smile on my lips.

* * *

"Wakey, wakey! Sleepy head." I opened my eyes to Yuffie's prattling and sighed as I pushed myself up, wincing as I leaned weight on my left arm. I yawned and glanced around the room as Yuffie grinned at me saying "It's about time you woke up. After you disappeared on Sora and the others, they were frantic about finding you. Turned out you were right outside the house." I glanced down at the bandage that was wrapped around my arm, Yuffie answering the question that hadn't even left my lips yet "You can thank Cid for that. Turns out he likes you, if he didn't he probably would've left you on the porch to bleed to death." I rolled my eyes at her over exaggeration and fingered the bandage for a brief moment.

I gave a small smile turning to Yuffie saying "Thanks for the update Yuffie. Would you happen to know where my coat is?"

Yuffie grinned and nodded answering "Aerith's got it at the moment and is fixing the sleeve for you as well as giving it a good cleaning. There was blood all over it." I smirked and nodded my thanks and stood up, heading downstairs silently tilting my head as I saw Cid working at the computer as per usual. I smirked and walked up behind him, tapping him on the shoulder lightly getting him to turn around slightly.

I grinned down at him before giving the man a small hug saying "Thanks for lookin' out for me Cid."

I let go and the older man smirked and thumbed his nose as he said "No problem, kid." My grin widened slightly and I placed a hand on his shoulder giving it a small friendly squeeze before walking out the door to look for Sora, Twilight, Donald, and Goofy. I had made it to the Marketplace when I let out an 'oof' as someone slammed into my back followed by three others. I glanced behind me with a raised eyebrow at Twilight and the boys. Sora had apparently been the one who had spotted me first as he was the one with his arms wrapped around my waist, Twilight engulfing the both of us followed by Donald and Goofy.

I chuckled quietly asking "If you're trying to pick my pocket guys you're failing miserably." Twilight laughed and pulled back letting go of me with Donald and Goofy. I blinked at Sora who let go a few seconds later.

I watched him for a moment, noting that the others had wandered off as the boy in front of me stared at me before snapping "Don't ever do that again!" I blinked in surprise, confusion etched on my face causing him to continue "When you disappeared after we left you, I thought…! You could've been...!" My eyes softened as I saw the worry that was etched across the younger teens face and pulled him into a hug, realizing what I had done. I had scared him half to death, made him worry that he had lost another friend.

I pulled away my hands on his shoulders as I apologized "Sorry about that Sora. There were some things I had to take care of before I could get back to you guys. I ended up passing out in the Burrow after meeting up with Cloud."

His eyes still shone with worry but curiosity was mixed in as he asked "How'd you get to Merlin's place then?"

I released him and scratched my cheek as I answered "Um…actually I'm not sure on that one."

Sora blinked and I gave a small soft smile at the teen saying "It's good to know you've got my back Sora."

He blinked saying "I've always had it."

I laughed and ruffled his hair fondly before asking "Where to next anyways?"

Sora tilted his head before grinning widely as he exclaimed "Twilight Town showed back up!" I blinked and nodded in acknowledgement. The game was starting to draw to a close and it was time to say goodbye to Radiant Garden. We wouldn't be coming back here for a while, if ever again.

I looked around the world that I wouldn't have minded calling home before I glanced back at Sora and said "Then let's get going."


	38. The Alternate Town

**Same deal as all the other times I've posted. I still own nothing. **

* * *

**Chapter 38: The Alternate Town**

After retrieving my jacket from Aerith, we took off; Leon getting another hug from Twilight which caused me to grin at the two of them. It was a short five hour hop to Twilight Town. I knew Twilight was happy to be back, it was one of her favorite worlds. Walking through the train station Goofy, who was walking in the back, said "Hey! I think we're almost there!" Donald and Sora stopped where they were turning to the bi-pedal dog with confused "Huh?"s, while Twilight and I just stopped and waited patiently for Goofy to explain what he meant. He tilted his head slightly confused and asked "Gawrsh, aren't we here because of the picture?" The boys obviously didn't remember the picture that Riku had given us and both Twilight and I hid our quiet laughter as Goofy pulled it out of his back pocket saying "Look, I'll show ya!"

He held the picture up in front of him, Donald waddling over to look at it, Sora close behind, the duck exclaiming "Yeah! Goofy's right!"

I chuckled at Donald's surprise but Goofy ignored it as he suggested "C'mon, let's go find this mansion!"

Sora nodded his agreement the boy throwing an enthusiastic "Yeah!" out there as well. The three boys turned to me questioningly and I raised an eyebrow at them as Sora asked "Do you know where it is, Ghost?"

I heaved a patient sigh asking "You three honestly don't remember where it was that you woke up?"

Sora shrugged as he explained "It's been a while since we've been here, that's all."

I gave a small smile and turned around, waving back at him saying "Well then follow me." Twilight and I grinned at each other for a brief moment, the other girl knowing just as well as I did where it was that we were going. The boys were following us as we made our way through the Sandlot with me sharing glares with Seifer and his gang before heading away towards the hole in the wall and the forest. Sora glanced around the darkened forest for a brief moment as we allowed our eyes to adjust to the dimness around us before running ahead, Goofy and Donald following quickly behind. Twilight glanced over at me, noting the tension that had built up throughout the walk, as much as I tried to hide it; she could still see the stiffened shoulders and the barely concealed frown on my face. I glanced over at her with a small smile and followed after the boys who had just left the forest.

Leaving the forest I glanced around at the scene before me. Hayner, Pence, and Olette were all on the ground, the boys kneeling beside them their concern evident as Hayner explained what was going on, "We came here looking for Kairi. Then those white things attacked us…"

I rolled my eyes as Donald stated the obvious "You gotta be careful!"

Sora nodded in agreement as I offered a hand to Pence, he took it and I pulled him up with a slight grunt, Sora saying as I did this, "Yeah, you guys didn't have to go and do that."

Hayner waved a hand as he glared at Sora disagreeing "Of course we did. Kairi's our friend, too, ya know."

He stood up and Sora watched him for a moment before pushing himself up to his feet saying "You're right… You know, I never thought of it like that before." I tilted my head curiously before shrugging it off, maybe it was because I knew I was protective of my friends while Sora just seemed to do it without thinking about it. He was a good kid.

We all looked up at the mansion as Hayner explained "Word is, this mansion gets a lot of really strange visitors." I snorted.

'_You have no idea just how strange those visitors really are, Hayner. You really don't.' _

Olette glanced over at me confused before continuing where Hayner had left off, "We thought this place might be the gateway to some kind of alternate Twilight Town." I raised an eyebrow at the group of Twilight Town residents; they actually were very bright even if Hayner was a bit of a lunkhead sometimes.

Confused Sora asked "What do you mean alternate Twilight Town?"

Pence and Hayner turned back around while Pence asked "Hey, Goofy, do you think we could see that crystal of yours?"

Goofy nodded, eager to get an explanation, and pulled out the crystal and munny pouch, Olette explaining "I made that pouch myself, and I still have it. So there shouldn't be two of them here."

My eyebrows shot up and Twilight snickered as Hayner pulled out the trophy from out of nowhere stating "And this is the trophy Seifer gave you. You left it behind, remember?"

We turned to Pence as he explained, "It's the only one of its kind. Same for the crystals—red, blue, yellow, and green—only one of each color. But you've got your own!"

Hayner placed the trophy down on the grass asking "So…where'd you get it?"

Sora crossed his arms as he thought about it, both Twilight and I rolling our eyes in amusement at the fact that he actually had to think about it while Goofy answered for him "The pouch is from the King. When he gave us munny for the train ride, he gave us the crystal too."

Sora sighed as he asked the real question "But then…where did the KING get it?"

I waved a hand knowingly as I mused "Ah, that is the question."

Sora glanced back at me asking "Do you know?"

Twilight and I grinned as I responded "We know all the answers, just not all the questions that go to those answers."

Sora stared at the two of us confused before turning back to Hayner with a shake of his head as the blonde said "See? There's gotta be another town out there like this one. That would explain how the King got that pouch and the crystal. Everything makes sense." My mouth twitched in a slight smile, Hayner was smart when he wanted to be.

The boys glanced at each other for a moment Sora turning back to the other three asking "It…does?" I burst out laughing, Twilight not far behind the three of them turning back to us, Sora propping his hands on his hips as he glared at the two of us.

I shook my head, thoroughly amused with the three of them, and smiled fondly at the brunette saying "Sora this is just one of those things where you just go with it."

He shook his head and raised his hands in a shrug before turning back to the others as Pence said "That other town must be where whatever's missing from here went!" My laughter vanished and I focused on what they were saying, I had forgotten this particular part of the conversation.

Olette stating an example for the boys "Like Kairi."

Our three boys nodded in understanding as Sora said "I get it!" They jumped as a couple of Dusks appeared behind us, Twilight and I not even twitching as the King flipped through the air easily dispatching one of them before he even landed on the ground.

The little mouse in red pointing at us and yelling "Watch out!" My hand twitched as if to summon my sword but it didn't appear as I lashed out at a Dusk that had gotten to close, my fist connecting in an uppercut that sent it flying before it dissipated. It didn't take long for the Dusks to vanish.

I grinned shaking out my right hand stating quietly "I still got it." I was pleased that my hand to hand fighting abilities hadn't diminished, seeing as I had pretty much used a sword the entire time. Twilight shook her head at me as the boys were talking to the King, the two of us calling for Hayner, Pence, and Olette to come out of hiding.

Twilight and I walked over as Mickey asked "But why'd you all come here?"

Sora frowned briefly as he answered "Someone gave us a clue."

Curiosity rang throughout Mickey's voice as he asked eagerly "Who?"

We glanced over at Goofy as he answered "Well, Your Majesty, Sora thinks it mighta been Riku."

Donald nodded as Sora explained "It's just a feeling I had."

Mickey smiled as he agreed vaguely "Welp, if that's what ya think, then it's probably right."

Sora jumped on it, my eyes narrowing at the sense that Mickey was hiding something as the brunette exclaimed happily "You mean Riku's okay!"

Mickey's response was vague and his voice was almost imperceptibly tinted with sadness as he said "If that's what ya think…"

Impatience, frustration, and worry boiled over as Sora crossed his arms looking down at the mouse saying tersely "I've waited long enough, Your majesty! Tell me what you know!"

I raised an eyebrow as Mickey turned around, the surprised face of Sora saying it all as Mickey said wearily "It's not for me to say."

Sora's expression changed to one of hurt as he pleaded "But Your Majesty! Why?"

The mouse king's expression was sad as he avoided everyone's gaze saying quietly "I don't wanna break my promise."

Sora grabbed the King's blunder exclaiming "You made a promise to Riku?" The King jumped realizing what he had done and clamped his hands to his mouth as Sora jumped excitedly, pumping a fist into the air exclaiming "So he's okay! I can see him again!"

It had apparently taken a while for Hayner, Pence, and Olette to return because they were just walking up, Hayner asking "Huh? Who's Riku?"

Sora grinned as he explained "My best friend."

Pence's eyes widened as he put the pieces together quickly exclaiming "THAT'S it!"

We watched as Olette walked forward and bent down slightly so that she was almost eye level with the mouse asking "Your Majesty? You got the pouch with the crystal from Riku, didn't you? And you promised not to tell, right?"

Mickey glanced down slightly, rubbing the back of his head knowing his cover was blown and muttered "Gosh, guys…" I chuckled he was obviously surprised at how easy he was to read.

Irritated Donald jumped up and exclaimed "That's enough!"

Sora nodded as he said "Yeah. Let's go!" Mickey and Sora turned around looking up at the ornate mansion, the boy muttering "Kairi! Riku! We're on our way!" I gave a small smile and walked forward, ruffling Sora's hair as I passed and headed into the building. I glanced over my shoulder as they followed, Sora with a mock glare plastered on his face though.

We paused in the main room of the mansion, barely glancing at the smashed table in the middle of the room as Mickey said "There's gotta be a computer somewhere."

Pence tilted his head curiously as he asked "A computer…Do you think it's connected to the other Twilight Town?"

Mickey nodded and said "It might be. And there should be a way into the Realm of Darkness there."

Sora raised an incredulous eyebrow as he asked "Riku told you that, didn't he?"

Mickey looked away from the boy saying "Please, Sora. I made a promise."

Sora grinned getting the response that he had been hoping for proclaiming "Aha! I knew it!"

I blinked and broke away from the quiet conference with Twilight, about how much we should actually show them or let them wander around themselves, and turned to the mouse with a raised eyebrow stating "You are too honest for your own good sometimes, Your Majesty. Never do undercover work."

Donald glared at the two of us and ordered "Hey! Stop pestering the King!"

Sora scratched the back of his head sheepishly muttering "Right. Sorry…" I just shrugged, unapologetic with my observation, and turned back to Twilight to continue our discussion. We sighed as Sora turned to me expectantly, knowing that I had been there before and probably knew my way around. I waved a follow me at the group and led them into the library, down the stairs and into the Computer room. I rolled my eyes slightly as Mickey and the boys ran forward as they spotted the multi-screen computer system.

Both Twilight and I sighed glancing at each other knowingly as Donald asked "How does it work?"

They turned to Pence as he walked in, having heard the question and said "I can handle it." They let him through and he settled down in the chair, looking over the system muttering to himself as he got a handle on it "Okay…" He tapped on the keyboard for a moment muttering once again "Here we go…"

A screen popped up and he gave a surprised exclamation that got Hayner to immediately ask "What's wrong?"

Pence gave a frustrated sigh as he explained "I can't go any further without a password." Twilight and I glanced at each other for a brief moment and I shrugged.

She nodded and walked up tapping the boy on the shoulder asking "Can I take a look?" Pence shot her a confused glance but nodded none-the-less and leaned back so that she could see the screen with her leaning on the chair. She bit her lip momentarily for a moment before reaching around the boy, her arms on either side as she typed on the keyboard not noticing the growing blush on Pence's face. He blinked in surprise as the computer took the password and allowed them access, Twilight leaning back with a triumphant grin on her face.

The others were gawping at her and I raised an eyebrow as Mickey was the first one to pick his jaw up off the floor asking "What was the password?"

She grinned and answered easily "Sea Salt Ice Cream."

Mickey blinked, as the others snapped their mouths shut, the King muttering "Well that makes sense. Ansem the Wise loved Sea Salt Ice Cream."

I turned my attention to the transporter and the others walked towards it Sora nodding resolutely as he said "Let's go."

I clapped a hand on Hayner's shoulder as I passed him saying "You guys stay on this side."

The teen gave an indignant "But…"

"No. Once you get in deep, you never get out. Stay here. Stay safe."

Hayner sighed as I stared the younger teen down but he nodded after a moment and I gave him a small smile before backing up onto the transporter thing myself, the teen saying "We'll be here to hold down the fort than."

Olette grinned as she added "Say hi to Kairi!"

Sora nodded with a grin as he promised "You bet!" The six of us stood on the platform, it was a little cramp but manageable, and I was barely able to suppress a 'beam me up Scotty' moment as we were transported to the digital town. There was a flash of light and as the light died down we saw that we were in the exact same room as before…with the noticeable exceptions of Hayner, Pence, and Olette not being there as well as the computer totaled due to an angry Roxas. We walked off the platform Sora, confused, asking "Are we back in the same place?" They looked around for a moment before spotting the smashed computer and I scratched my cheek with an amused grin, Roxas had really wailed on the poor thing. Sora stared at the out of commission computer, solemnly saying "This is the other Twilight Town. Roxas's Twilight Town." I placed a hand on the boy's shoulder and gave him a small smile when he glanced back at me.

We turned to Mickey as he said "There's gotta be an entrance into the dark realm somewhere. Let's split up."

I rolled my eyes and simply pointed at the doorway that would led them to it muttering "Or you could just consult your built in darkness detector." Sora smirked slightly and followed the King through the door and into the Basement Hall. Tucked into the corner of the room was this very inconspicuous glowing orb of light and darkness…really it was impossible to notice. Did anyone catch the sarcasm of that phrase?

I headed towards it, I was naturally drawn towards the darkness in the first place so it was really no surprise to the others when I walked up to it, they simply followed me Mickey stating "This is it." I glanced back at the group with a grim smirk and nodded, outstretching a hand towards it and allowing myself to be drawn into the portal. For a road to darkness one would not have expected it to be so bright but it was, Nobody symbols were floating everywhere and in all directions. It hadn't been portrayed in the game but when I said they were floating everywhere I meant that literally. It was actually very difficult to walk two feet forward without one harmlessly passing through you as it made its way through the corridor.

Sora looked around asking "What is this place?"

As the others were looking around Donald asked "Well, which way should we go?"

I rolled my eyes and couldn't resist the sarcastic remark as I teased "Well, we shouldn't go the way we came." Sora and Donald rolled their eyes while Twilight gave a small sigh; weapons appearing in everyone's hands as Dusk's appeared. It would've been a simple battle seeing as all the enemies were Dusks but the problem was that they kept coming. Twilight and I knew what the problem was but we were too busy with our own attackers to spare the concentration to tell him to keep on the move.

I glanced back at Sora as he said "It's no use."

I shook my head at him and continued fighting, a smirk forming on my face as Axel's voice cut through to us "Don't stop moving, or the darkness will overtake you!"Axel jumped in close to me and Twilight taking out a few of the Nobodies, turning to Sora and the others ordering "Get goin'!"

Confused as to why an 'enemy' would be helping him Sora questioned "Why?"

I could hear the exasperation in Axel's voice as he exclaimed "Don't ask. Just do it!" My eyes widened and I let out an involuntary gasp as he was pulled down by a couple of Dusks. I got one of them while Sora got the other. Axel sending me a small nod as Twilight and I concentrated on keeping the Dusks away from the two of them, Donald and Goofy doing the same on the opposite side.

Sora knelt down in front of the red head asking concerned "You okay?"

I glanced back as Axel pushed himself up to his knees before turning my attention back on the Dusks that kept coming, listening as he said "I kidnapped Kairi, but she got away from me. After that, Saix caught her." I backhanded one of the Dusks who tried to get past me on my left my eyes narrowed in frustration at the seemingly endless line of Dusks as Axel continued "He's a member of Organization XIII. Saix. Got it memorized? Now go save her!" I couldn't help the smile or the laughter that bubbled up in my chest at the catch phrase but this was neither the time nor the place to be caught off guard.

A Dusk formed over Sora's head and attacked him but he spun around killing the thing before it got even close enough to do anything, Axel standing up as Sora yelled "Leave us alone!" Sora charged back into the battle and I glanced up at Axel as he spun around taking out a few of the Dusks that were pressing Twilight and I back.

I nodded a thanks up at him as I took out another one, Axel observing "Well this is certainly an odd situation to be meeting up again."

I smirked and retorted teasingly "Would this be considered a first date?" Axel let out a peel of laughter that had me grinning as we plowed through another group of Dusks. Twilight had gotten separated from us but had joined up with Donald and Goofy on the fringe of the battle trying to work their way to the inside where we were. Sora, Axel, and I had been forced into the middle back to back.

We had a slight break where there were no Dusks coming after us and I glanced up as Axel smirked stating drily, a hint of laughter in his voice, "I think I liked it better when they were on my side."

I chuckled and Sora grinned and glanced over his shoulder at the taller man teasingly asking "Feeling a little…regret?"

Axel's cocky smirk was planted on his face as he turned to the boy saying "Nah…I can handle these punks. Watch this!" My smirk vanished and I watched as he straightened up, shoot an apologetic smile to me, and jumped away; my hand just barely missing catching onto him as he got away. Axel landed, his chakrams floating around him, fire building up. He yelled and the flames and weapons exploded outwards. I winced as I was momentarily blinded but didn't really care, barely noting the fact that all the Dusks were now gone as I ran over to the where Axel was laying on the ground. I skidded to a halt and dropped to my knees, my eyes flicking over him for a moment watching as darkness floated away from him. I placed a hand on his chest pouring darkness back into him trying to stabilize the dying man in front of me. He watched me for a brief moment as I worked, Sora running towards us, as he said "Sorry, Ghost. I know I promised no suicide moves but…"

I gritted my teeth slightly and growled "Don't you dare talk like that. I AM going to save your sorry ass, so I can kill you myself for this." Axel gave a dry chuckle as I concentrated fully on my work.

Sora glanced between the two of us for a moment before crouching down next to me concern lacing his voice as he said "You're…fading away…"

If he could have Axel would've shrugged but as he couldn't he opted for saying easily "Well, that's what happens when you put your whole being into an attack. You know what I mean? Not that Nobodies actually HAVE beings…right?" He glanced up at me for a moment wincing at the glare that he received, not because it was angry but because it was so sad. He wanted to comfort the girl that was trying desperately to keep him alive but there were more important things to attend to at the moment. He turned to Sora who was crouched over him and said "Anyway, I digress. Go, find Kairi. Oh, almost forgot…Sorry for what I did to her."

Sora glanced up at me for a brief second as my eyes narrowed in concentration, sparkling with unshed tears even with as fast as I was replacing the darkness it was still flowing away from Axel quickly, saying to the red head "When we find her, you can tell her that yourself."

Axel glanced at him for a moment before turning to stare up at the ceiling, placing a hand over the one I had laid on his chest saying "Think I'll pass. My heart just wouldn't be in it, you know? Haven't got one." He laughed quietly, noting that a small smile had formed itself on my lips at his horrible joke before returning back to the grim frown that it had been before.

Curious Sora tilted his head as he asked sadly "Axel, what were you trying to do?"

Axel's green eyes shifted over to Sora as he answered easily "I wanted to see Roxas." Sora jerked slightly surprised with the answer his eyes growing even sadder than they had been before as the red head continued "He…was the only one I liked…He made me feel…like I had a heart." I blinked as his hand tightened on mine as he said "It's kind of… funny…You, Ghost, and Twilight make me feel…the same…" I bit my lip to keep from laughing as his face took on an 'oh shit, why'd I say that' look, so he did the only thing he could in that situation. He changed the subject. "Kairi's in the castle dungeon. Now go." He raised a hand and formed a portal before letting it drop to the ground.

Sora stayed where he was for a moment quietly saying "Axel…"

I looked up at him and pleaded "Sora…go. Please, I'll take care of him, but just go." Sora stared at me for a moment before glancing up at Twilight who had placed a hand on his shoulder. The boy nodded and shot me a sympathetic look, not really understanding what was going on but willing to go with it. I watched as Twilight, Sora, Donald, and Goofy walked through the portal before turning my full concentration onto Axel, who had his eyes closed but the occasional squeeze that he gave my hand was enough to assure me that he was still alive. I straightened up as a familiar, yet almost forgotten, feeling came upon me.

**Do you wish to save him?**


	39. Regaining What Was Lost

**Yes I am evil like that sometimes. ;) But let's get this show on the road. Honestly, I have no idea how I feel about this chapter it went so cliche there for a bit but I hope I pulled it mostly out. This was going to be out last week but I got distracted by another story that I am working on and then the plot bunnies decided to swamp my brain with three different One Piece stories all at the same time. *sigh* I should go watch the new episode actually... Also I got a bit lazy with some of the fights you'll be able to tell where. **

**Shout outs: haliedaisy, kenegi, BAYALE, OrionRedde, SpringBorn, KuroNeko513, mauralucky7, kingdomdisney, Vanessa Rowes, and KhAndTwilightFan15 **

**Disclaimer: I still don't own anything other than my character. **

* * *

**Chapter 39: Regaining what was lost**

**Do you wish to save him?**

I nearly groaned, the creepy disembodied voice had returned.

'_Should I just call you stalker or something?'_

I felt it sigh and the feeling of frustration made its way through me as it dropped the cryptic way it talked, saying **Listen. Do you want to save the guy or not?** If the situation hadn't been so serious I probably would've been laughing and would've enjoyed messing with the thing's non-existent head but as it was I just nodded.

'_How do I save him? Tell me how I save Axel!'_

**You have to kiss him. **

I deadpanned, my face taking on a 'you have to be shitting me look' before I responded drily _'You're shitting me right? That's too damn cliché to be how you want me to save him!' _

I could practically feel the eye roll as it retorted** Don't blame me that energy and light transference is easiest through the lips.**

I spluttered for a moment still stunned that this was honestly how I was going to save Axel _'Yes but….IT'S SO DAMN CLICHÉ!' _

**JUST KISS THE MAN ALREADY DAMMIT! YOU'RE RUNNING OUT OF TIME!** I winced as the connection snapped and I muttered something about 'moody disembodied voices that seriously needed to get a life.' With that said though I shrugged and leaned down. I hesitated for a moment before pressing my lips to his, jumping slightly at the electricity that ran through me as soon as our lips touched. My first kiss goes to a dying man, now that's a story in and of itself. He tasted a little like cinnamon with a mix of wood smoke. I couldn't pull away as I felt my light transferring. My eyes widened and my vision blurred, it looked like I was going through a tunnel of light and darkness.

By the time my sight had readjusted to my surroundings I was no longer kneeling over Axel but standing on the Station of Awakening. It was different than it had been the first time I was here; the Nobody symbol was still there but this time Demyx, Twilight, Sora, and Axel were depicted. Demyx, Twilight, and Sora's depictions were all awake and glowing…and oddly enough didn't have any glass but the one of Axel had fire and darkness coming off of it. I gasped, no idea why but things never make sense in dreams, and rushed forward freezing in front of it trying to figure out what to do for a moment before my eyes narrowed at the faint glow that was coming from the center of the stain glass. I glanced over at the other depictions and sighed, this was gonna hurt like a bitch and a half. I knelt down and slammed a fist through the glass that was caging Axel's light. I hissed as the fire licked at my midriff, eating through the clothes to get to skin beneath it, glass punching through my gloves to taste blood. I gritted my teeth and pushed forward, despite the glass that seemed to be fighting to keep me out, the flames getting stronger. I yelled in pain before biting it back, growling in frustration at the fact that the light was just beyond my reach. I'm the User of Darkness; not Light! I leaned down further and then laid flat out ignoring the flames and broken glass, some things are more important than my personal comfort. I managed to get a hand beneath Axel's light and gently pulled it up out of the darkness wincing as it started to burn my already injured hand. I rolled away from the flames, breathing hard, clutching the searing light to my chest for a brief moment before blinking as it floated away from me. The hole that I had created was no longer burning with fire or darkness, the glass gone, and the light filling the space where it had been. I gave a sigh of relief and closed my eyes in exhaustion.

My eyes snapped open. There was no pain, only the feeling of new scars on my hands and stomach, and I was once again staring down at Axel. My hand on his chest twitched as I felt a heart beat underneath it, slow and slightly sporadic at first but strong and steady after a moment or two. Axel's eyes flashed open a bright emerald green meeting my blue ones, the tips of my hair tickling his face, his other arm wrapping itself around my waist. I felt him smile and was finally able to pull away, a smile pulling on my lips as I watched him warily as if he'd croak at any moment just to irritate me. I straightened up letting the red head sit up himself.

He placed a hand on his chest checking to see if what he was feeling was real before quietly muttering "I have a heart…" His head shot up to me with a grin exclaiming happily "I have a heart!"

The grin that spread across my face was wide and genuine as I tackled him into a hug, my face buried into the crook of his neck muttering "Turned out all you needed was a little light to lead your heart back to you."

Axel wrapped his arms around me with a grin of his own, leaning his cheek against my hair as he took in the scent of apples and vanilla from my favored shampoo saying "I talked with Roxas." I pulled back slightly so I could look him in the eye as he continued "We said our good-byes." I nodded in understanding, sadness tinting my expression. I blinked as he leaned forward and pressed his lips to mine in a slow, soft kiss. He was somewhat surprised when I picked up on what he was doing as quickly as I did, despite my inexperience, my arms wrapping around his neck, his hair was surprisingly soft for being all spikes, while his wrapped around my waist. He pulled away and laid his face in the crook of my neck with a small sigh as he said "You better catch up with the others." I heaved a sigh as well, not wanting this moment to end, but I pushed myself up and turned to the portal. Pausing when Axel wrapped his arms around me from behind and I glanced up at him as he pulled me back so that I was pressed against his chest as he warned "If you get yourself killed I will be very upset with you."

I smirked and leaned into him for a moment before pulling myself away as I said "If I get myself killed I'll be very upset with myself as well." I cupped his cheek with a small smile before continuing "I'll be back. Don't worry about me; I still need to kick your ass for pulling a suicide move on me." He winced before nodding, smiling when I stretched up so that I could kiss his cheek gently before running through the portal with a wave.

I moved through the portal and glanced around at the dark alley that I was in, noting the fact that it was as always... raining. The others weren't here but that wasn't all that surprising. I jogged on, it took a lot longer than the game showed to get to Memory Skyscraper but it was easy enough to find, really how could one miss a skyscraper with multiple big screen TVs on it. I glanced over at the Neo Shadows that were coming up from the ground, my control over darkness flaring up forcing them to slink back into the ground. I liked Neo Shadows, they were cool but it would take too long to fight them off and I was in a bit of a hurry. The guys and Twilight were just getting to the large building when I spotted them and called "Hey! Guys!" The stopped and turned around with relieved smiles and sighs, Twilight noting with relief and amusement the spring in my step as I jogged up to them.

Sora gave me a worried look as he asked "You okay?"

I nodded with a grin in response, the boy in front of me grinning himself as I said "Let's get this show on the road then." He nodded and we started walking again. We had come to the threshold of the Skyscraper, my eyes narrowing at the Samurai Nobodies that appeared blocking our path from Sora.

Donald let out a startled yelp and called out "Sora!"

The boy whipped around in surprise before yelling in concern "Donald! Goofy! Twilight! Ghost!" He charged forward when he vanished. I raised an eyebrow at the spot he had been before glancing over at Twilight, the two of us giving knowing shrugs as Donald and Goofy yelled out to the boy. My sword appeared in my hand and Twilight unsheathed her own the two of us lunging at the Nobodies, our blades clashing with the Samurai bringing Donald and Goofy out of their stupor.

The fight was easy and simple and I couldn't resist when I was forced into a duel with one of the Samurai to say, accent and everything, "My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die." Twilight burst out laughing from where she was as I dispatched the Samurai who just seemed confused, as if wondering if that was really my name and if it had really killed my father.

Now that all of the Samurai Nobodies were gone all there was left to do was wait, Twilight gave me a high-five as she said, still laughing, "If you didn't say it, I would have." I laughed myself as we left both Donald and Goofy in complete confusion as the waited worriedly for Sora.

I blinked as Sora randomly came back into view, the boy muttering "You make a good other."

Donald and Goofy let out relieved sighs before walking up behind him, the duck asking "Are you okay?"

Confused, Sora didn't even turn around as he asked "What…just happened?"

Twilight and I joined the three of them as Goofy answered "Gawrsh, I dunno. You just disappeared. Then we had to fight some Nobodies."

Donald nodded as Sora stared up at the Skyscraper contemplatively, still trying to make sense of what just happened muttering "Oh." He raised his voice so we could hear him as he continued "He said…he defeated Riku…"

Donald tilted his head curiously as he asked "Who said that?"

Sora turned around, not understanding that we hadn't seen Roxas show up, as he said "That guy. In the black coat."

Donald walked forward with a smile, opening his hands and saying, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, "But nobody could defeat Riku." Twilight and I clapped hands over the other's mouth in an attempt to not retort that a Nobody had defeated Riku. Sora noticed our odd behavior but just chalked it up to us being us.

Sora looked down at Donald for a moment and nodded hesitantly "Y…Yeah, you're right."

Goofy stepped forward saying "A black coat means Organization XIII."

I blinked asking Twilight loudly, gesturing towards my black coat, "Since when was I in the Org.?"

Twilight gasped dramatically and pointed a finger at me saying "I…! don't know."

We laughed before I turned to Sora asking "Was he blonde? Had Keyblades? Really bright blue eyes?" Sora nodded and I just gave a small smile saying "Don't worry about him. He's a good guy."

Sora stared at me confused asking "But how do you know?"

My eyes softened slightly as I simply stated "Because that was Roxas." Sora's eyes widened and he blinked in astonishment as I continued "You had a fight within yourself, that's why we didn't see him."

Sora groaned quietly and shook his head asking "Why doesn't any of this make sense?"

I chuckled and Twilight moved forward placing her hands on his shoulders to push him along saying "C'mon boys time to go to the castle." They followed after the girl and Sora with me taking up the back. I paused as I felt a fluctuation in the darkness and glanced over my shoulder at the blonde teen Nobody that stood there.

I smiled and turned around, shoving my hands in my pockets asking "How you been Roxas?"

He shrugged slightly, nodding his head over towards where Sora and the others had gone saying "He's doing well. I was worried for a little while."

I chuckled and shook my head teasing the blonde in front of me "Well the two of you do seem to be rather trouble prone." Roxas shrugged, he couldn't really deny that.

He turned his bright blue eyes to my own asking "Axel?"

I gave him a gentle smile as I answered "He's fine." The teen gave a relieved sigh and nodded his appreciation. I reached forward and ruffled his hair fondly, the teen ducking away from me with a smirk, saying "I'll catch you later Roxas. There's a lot to do before this is finally over."

The blonde nodded and stepped backwards into a portal as well saying "See ya later, Ghost." I gave a sad smile as he vanished into the darkness before turning around to catch up with the others at The Brink of Despair, Mickey having joined us there as well.

I jogged up behind the others as Sora groaned "Dead end?"

Ever the optimist Mickey said "There's gotta be a path somewhere." I blinked and raised an eyebrow at the bright light that suddenly shown from beneath one of the towers Sora raised a hand and the Keyblade appeared for him to unlock the path.

With the Keyblade showing the way, the invisible bridge formed in front of us, Sora letting the Keyblade go as he muttered "Kairi…We're almost there."

I clapped a hand on his shoulder with a small smile saying "Well we're not getting there any faster by just standing here, right?" Sora smirked and nodded, running up the bridge with all of us following him.

* * *

We had just made it off the bridge when I flinched as Sora yelled "Kairi! Where are you?"

I stepped up behind him and slapped him upside the head hissing at him "Shush up! You want to bring what's left of the Org. on us?"

Mickey was right behind me, nodding his agreement as he hushed the boy as well "Remember where we are! This is their stronghold!"

I rolled my eyes as the King took off running, Donald chasing after him for a moment calling after the monarch "Wait! Your Majesty!"

The duck slumped before we all got in defensive positions as Goofy said "Be careful! I think we got company!" It was only a few Dusks but it was enough to slow us down for a little bit. We glanced around the entrance, searching for any more enemies that would ambush us but when none showed themselves we made our way forward, quietly.

We had gotten to Twilight's View with relatively little trouble but we were forced to stop as Saix stared down at us from the ledge up above saying "Sora…You've done well."

Sora glanced around for a second before spotting the man and demanding "Where's Kairi?"

If he wasn't such a stiff Saix probably would've shrugged as he said "Who knows? I expect she's catching up with her friend from the darkness."

I gave a dark smirk at the disgruntled tone in Saix's normally arrogant, monotonous voice as Sora once again demanded an explanation "What do you mean?"

Saix waved a hand as he explained arrogantly, trying to inflict as much pain as he possibly could, "She doesn't need you anymore."

Sora snorted before he stepped forward retorting boldly "I'm supposed to believe that?"

Saix raised his hands in as much of a shrug as he could possibly give as he responded "Well, you don't have to…But you can believe this. Organization XIII has no further use for you…"

I interrupted Saix with a sarcastic "Oh, too bad Sora looks like you've been fired."

The boy snorted and Saix's eyes narrowed down at me and my gut clenched in fear that I wouldn't allow to show before he returned his attention to Sora and pointed up at the heart moon saying "Just look there. Our Kingdom Hearts…Thanks to you, we've collected countless hearts…Can you hear their euphoria?" I rolled my eyes as Siax continued "Now, all they need is one more helping from the Keyblade bearer!" He snapped his hands summoning heartless that quickly surrounded us. I made an obscene, rude, gesture with my arms up at Saix which caused his glare to return to full force but I was too busy taking in the Heartless situation to really care at the moment.

I blinked as a young female voice called down from up above "Sora!" Sora jerked to stare up where the voice was coming from, my eyes following where the voice as well quickly spotting the bright pink as she called down again "Sora! It's really you!"

He jerked around happily calling up to her in relief "Kairi!"

I rolled my eyes as he got jumped by multiple shadows and shot a glare at them which sent them scampering…unfortunately I was a little late in the fact that Kairi had already jumped down ordering "You leave Sora alone!"

I glanced over at where Kairi had landed, still up a level and rolled my eyes as I saw that she too had been jumped by multiple Shadows and muttered down to Sora as I helped him up "You two really are so meant to be together it's scary." The boy blushed and whipped out his Keyblade so that he could start pounding on the Heartless, my own weapon appearing in my hand; the two of us the last to join the fight.

He glanced up at where Kairi was worried and saw 'Ansem' fighting alongside her confused he voiced the question out loud "What's going on?"

I tilted my head at the arrow bullet that embedded itself into the floor and glanced up at Sora saying "I…wouldn't move if I were you." He stared at me confused but at least he didn't move as the rain of bullets destroyed all of the Heartless around us.

I grinned up at the ledge where Xigbar had portalled as he taunted Sora asking "Have you been a good boy?"

Sora stared up at the ledge demanding "Show yourself!"

Xigbar walked forward into our view shaking his head as he said "Oh, it sounds like you haven't. Sora! Roxas!"

Confused Sora stared up at him asking quietly "Roxas?"

I shook my head at the boy's memory; it was about as good as a gold fish's, before grinning as I waved up at Xiggy calling "Hey, Xiggy! Long time no see!"

The Sniper looked down at me and smirked as he called back "Heya, kid! You're lookin' better than the last time I saw you!"

I deadpanned stating monotonously "That's a fairly easy achievement. I've seen zombies that looked better than me the last time you saw me." Xigbar gave a good natured chuckle as we both ignored Sora's conversation with the others for a brief moment. I called up to him "We really have to do this?"

He shrugged saying "Gotta at least make it look good kid." I shrugged at him and nodded as he turned his attention to Sora saying "You've really put Organization XIII in a pickle. I guess that must be why the Keyblade chose you. But MAN, did it pick a dud this time. You don't look like you're half the hero the others were."

Sora glared up at the man, still confused but he was more worried about Kairi, "Are you done rambling?"

I bit back a laugh as Xiggy stared down at the teen asking "Rambling? As if! All I'm trying to tell you, traitor, is that your time is up!" He pulled out his weapons and I gave an appreciative whistle to which he sent me a small grin before jumping down to our level and sneering at us.

I sighed and walked over to Twilight asking "Are you feeling this fight? 'Cause I'm not feeling this fight."

Twilight shook her head agreeing "I'm not feeling this fight either."

A barrier popped up around us and we waved at the boys with me calling over "Good luck. Try not to die, please."

All four of them blinked in confusion as Twilight and I went into our own conversation forcing them to fight around us, the occasional bullet pinging against the barrier. "So how is it that you get along so well with Xiggy?"

I shrugged at her question as I answered "He saved my ass when I got caught. He was the one who got me out."

Twilight blinked and asked "So…he's a good guy?"

I nodded with a simple "Maybe? Personally I think he did it for the Shits and Giggles."

"And we're still fighting him?"

"Yep"

"Why?"

"Who knows?" Twilight chuckled as we settled down to watch the rest of the fight.

* * *

Twilight dropped the barrier as Xigbar fell to his knees, letting the gun drop with a clang as Sora asked "Why did you call me Roxas?"

Xiggy chuckled darkly looking up as he said "Wouldn't you like to know…"

With that said though he warped his way out of there Sora calling after him "Hey! Hold on!"

He didn't get far as Xigbar disappeared with a wink towards me and Twilight as Donald jumped up behind Sora exclaiming "Sora! It's Kairi!" They turned around and we followed Donald's pointing finger up to where Kairi and 'Ansem' were having trouble fighting off the never ending Shadows.

Sora stared up at the scene saying resolutely "Kairi, we're on our way!" I blinked as Sora took off and followed him quickly to make sure that he didn't get into too much trouble as we headed through Naught's Skyway, with little trouble, making it up quickly to the upper tier of Hall of Empty Melodies.

I let out a sigh as we finally reached them, the last of the Heartless vanishing beneath 'Ansem's' sword. Kairi was still expecting an attack, even if her Keyblade was gone. She wasn't facing us but it didn't matter as Donald complimented the girl "Kairi, you were great!" Sora was staring at the girl, taking in her new appearance having not seen her in a little over a year. She turned around and gave a small gasp as she saw Sora, giving a bashful laugh at the compliment before both she and Sora walked forward. I rolled my eyes at the sappy moment, happy for them but I was keeping an eye on Riku, while Twilight was completely getting into the moment. I glanced over in time to see the two of them hug and allowed a small fond smile to pass over my face before turning back to my vigil, watching my fellow darkness wielder so that he didn't leave early. A portal appeared behind him and I jerked slightly, Twilight catching the motion turned her attention onto Riku as well.

I glanced over at Sora as he called "Wait, Ansem!" He was going to continue but my hands prevented that as Twilight threw up a barrier preventing Riku from leaving.

Kairi glared at me for a moment, confused to who I was as I turned my attention to Sora saying "I should probably tell you this before you make a fool of yourself. Don't be fooled by appearances and Darkness will always hide what it wants." He blinked up at me confused as I had pulled his head back so that it rested against my shoulder.

I sighed and turned to the girl asking "Would you mind spelling it out for him Kairi?"

She tilted her head curiously and asked "Just…who are you?"

I blinked and laughed, releasing Sora so that I could scratched the back of my head sheepishly as I introduced myself "The name's Ghost." I jerked a thumb over at Twilight who waved eagerly to the girl as I said "That's Twilight."

Sora turned to me asking "What'd you mean 'make a fool of myself'?"

I sighed and ruffled his hair explaining "I'm not about to let you chase off, one of the people you've been looking for just because Darkness has cast its shadow over him."

Sora blinked in confusion as Riku tried to get past the barrier that Twilight had thrown up only to be stopped by Kairi who grabbed onto his arm begging "Riku, don't go!"

The boys jumped in surprise as I rolled my eyes and Twilight slapped a hand to her forehead as Sora asked "Kairi, what did you just say?"

She was still holding onto his arm but she turned to look over at Sora simply stating "Riku."

Riku turned away saying, in the deep voice of Ansem, "I'm no one…just a castaway from the darkness."

I snorted as Twilight muttered "Like Ghost would cast you away."

They all shot us confused looks before Kairi pleaded "Sora, come here. Say something to him." Confused but trusting he stepped forward to where they were, Kairi taking his hand as she said "Here. You'll understand." She placed their hands one on top of the other and gently ordered Sora "Close your eyes." He glanced up at Riku before doing as he was told.

We watched as Sora stared up at Riku for a moment before dropping to the ground, clutching onto the teen's hand like a lifeline relief seeping through his voice "Riku…It's Riku. Riku's here… I looked for you."

Twilight and I gave each other small smiles as the two friends reunited, Riku trying to cheer the other boy up "C'mon, Sora. You've got to pull it together." I raised an eyebrow, it was slightly…disconcerting to hear a teenager's voice coming from a grown man's body but…there have been stranger things.

Sora shook his head trying to get Riku to understand "I looked everywhere for you!"

Riku gave a small sigh and explained "I didn't want you to find me."

I smirked and glanced over at Twilight as she muttered "And you just have a penchant for vanishing."

I chuckled as Goofy asked "But it was him that was helpin' us, wasn't it?" Donald stared up at his friend in confusion forcing Goofy to explain "Those clues we kept finding. That musta been Riku."

Riku turned to the two bi-pedal animals, as Sora stood up, the teen saying "I was starting to worry you guys weren't ever gonna catch on. Sora never did pick the brightest of friends."

I raised an eyebrow and Twilight let out a dramatic gasp while I said "We resent that remark." He glanced over at us but I shot him a wink, letting him know that no offense was taken, before both Twilight and I started laughing; the two of us didn't always come off as the smartest of people with all our joking around.

We calmed down as Riku turned back to Sora as he asked "Why didn't you let me know you were okay?"

Riku raised an eyebrow before looking away as he stated "I told you. I didn't want to be found. Not like this…I couldn't. I fought with Ansem. With…Xehanort's Heartless…when it invaded my heart, and I won. But to use the power of darkness, I had to become Ansem myself."

Kairi blinked up at the taller teen worried and asked "Does that mean…you can't change back?"

Riku glanced over at her saying "This battle isn't over. And until it is, I still need the power of darkness."

Sora nodded in understanding but I tilted my head curiously as he glanced back at both me and Twilight asking "Can't you do something for him Ghost?"

I tilted my head thoughtfully, stepping forward and circling the transformed teen as he asked "Why would she be able to do something?"

Sora grinned up at his friend as he explained "She's the User of Darkness."

Kairi shot a confused glance between both me and Sora asking "User?"

I poked my head out from around Riku with a shrug responding "User, Wielder, Manipulator, Controller, Master, Being of…yadda yadda yadda. All those things and more." Kairi stared at me confused, not sure how she should handle that answer.

I stepped back and looked up at Riku as he asked "And you weren't overcome?"

I shrugged "Hell if I know why not…"

Twilight snorted and I glanced over at her as she stated drily "Sheer stubbornness and spite. That's what did it. You'd probably stay alive just to spite someone knowing you."

I laughed and nodded my head in agreement as Sora leaned over to his two childhood friends muttering "They're a little odd."

"I heard that." Sora winced and I put him in a loose headlock saying "Kid you gotta start remembering that I've got good hearing."

He struggled out of my grip with a grin exclaiming "Hey, c'mon Ghost! Let go." I chuckled good humouredly and ruffled his hair before turning my attention back to Riku saying "For now…let's just see what happens. As you said yourself there's still a fight to finish."

Sora nodded saying "Then…let's finish it. You're still Riku, no matter what!" I glanced back momentarily as Donald and Goofy joined the group of teenagers everyone nodding their agreement before Sora turned around asking "So how 'bout it; Think we can handle one last rumble together? The King's waiting!"

Donald grinned as he agreed "Yeah! Let's get going!"

I chuckled as Twilight asked "You think you could get rid of us after we came all this way? No way, man." Out of the corner of my eye I saw a greenish beam of light head off towards Kingdom Hearts.

I wasn't the only one who had seen it as Sora asked "What's that?"

Riku stared up at it before answering "It's the King and Diz…I mean, Ansem the Wise. They must be higher up. We better hurry."


	40. Adios Moon Boy

Job searching is depressing. *sigh* Well I shall persevere eventually, until then I shall write more. I've had a couple of muses come and knock on the door so that's fun. The Olympics are over so I'll have more time to devote to writing as well, I always enjoy watching the Olympics. :D

Shout out: BAYALE, OrionRedde, kingdomdisney, SpringBorn, Vanessa Rowes, majestic ocean melody12, Jubilee, RonaldBluemile, KhAndTwilightFan15, and Wyxlan Lonestar

Disclaimer: The only thing I own is a copy of the game, that's it.

* * *

**Chapter 40: Adios Moon Boy**

We had only gone up a few steps when a portal opened up before us, revealing Luxord. He snapped his fingers and surrounded everyone but Sora with cards and both Twilight and I sighed. I glanced at her and shrugged stating "Looks like we're gonna miss this one to."

Twilight shrugged in reply saying "Oh well. No biggie." I chuckled and allowed myself to be turned into a card. Let's just say it was an interesting experience that I would prefer not to repeat, going 2D was not fun. It didn't seem like it was for very long before we were changed back and I raised an eyebrow before patting myself down as if to make sure I was no longer flat and that I still had everything. Twilight was grinning like mad and jumping up and down, clearly happy that she was no longer a card either.

Kairi shot us an odd look before she walked towards Sora asking "You okay?"

The boy grinned and nodded as he answered "Yeah! No worries. Let's keep moving." We made our way through a room with what looked like gravestones, some of them were lit others were not. This was Proof of Existence. There was a small problem though…at least three Nobodies that were still alive were not lit up which sent me into a spiral of confusion before I glanced back at Twilight who had a look of absolute triumph on her face.

I waited for the others to leave before asking "What'd you do?"

She grinned back at me and explained "I cast an illusion over the stones." She waved a hand and the stones that represented Axel, Xigbar, and Demyx glowed once again.

I gawped at her before snapping my mouth closed asking "When did you learn how to do that?" Then again I probably shouldn't have been asking seeing as she had done so in Port Royal.

If it were possible her grin probably would've gotten even bigger as she answered "I figured it out while you were gone."

I smirked and clapped a hand on her shoulder as we finally followed the others out, only to hear Riku saying "I can sense Saix. He's using something to boost his power. If we can figure out his power source, we may be able to use it, too."

I raised an eyebrow stating drily "There's a reason he's called the Luna Diviner. So unless you guys can start distilling moonlight into power than you can forget that plan." They stared at us, Sora and the boys shrugging it off they had gotten used to us randomly knowing things like that; Kairi and Riku hadn't been around us for long enough to get that we were just like that. The two newcomers watched us, me in particular as I had been the one who had opened my big mouth instead of letting them figure it out themselves, both of them with suspicion clearly written all over their faces. My eyes narrowed slightly, uncomfortable with their close scrutiny and starting to feel my hackles go up; I was getting defensive and with a sharp tongue that was never the best way to make friends. Plus I hadn't felt quite right since I had rescued Axel, there was just something off that I couldn't figure out.

Riku crossed his arms as he stated "You certainly seem to know a lot about the Nobodies."

I blinked, my face going neutral not allowing anything to show except for faint amusement and annoyance, as I waved off the statement saying "You'd be surprised at what I know or don't know." His, still, golden eyes narrowed on mine as I watched him, caution welling up in the back of my eyes. Twilight and the others watched the two of us carefully unsure of what was going on or how they should react.

I raised an eyebrow as he asked a question that Sora should've asked a long time ago "How do you know so much?"

My mouth twitched at the corners, a brief and faint smile making its way across my face, before answering calmly "I have my sources." He raised an eyebrow of his own in clear question causing me to continue "None that I'll name. Knowledge can be your greatest ally."

"So enlighten me." He was serious and demanding something from me. I think he expected me to get defensive or something 'cause I truly enjoyed the look of shock on his face as I barked out a laugh.

I smirked up at him, challenge and amusement lacing every ounce of my being, as I retorted "Ask me no questions, I'll tell you no lies." His eyes narrowed down at me and I could feel his frustration at not getting any answers. I could understand why he was being so suspicious 'cause _really_ would anyone trust two random people who seemingly know far more than they should. I shoved my hands into my coat pockets with a cocky smirk that clearly challenged any authority that Riku had in the group and I raised an eyebrow wondering just how he was going to react to this. His jaw clenched for a moment before I dropped the smirk and glanced back at Twilight as she placed a hand on my shoulder. She shot me a look silently asking me what I was doing and I just shrugged. I turned away from her and closed my eyes, taking a long calming breath before letting it out in a sigh, forcing myself to relax, turning my senses inward while I focused on what felt wrong. A frown twitching on my lips as I figured out just was wrong. I was not looking forward to the fight with Saix in the least. Riku blinked as he watched me force myself to get under control, this close to the Darkness I couldn't allow myself to get caught off guard; losing most of my light had put me under some strain…it was going to take a while for my elements to regain balance. I had to expel some darkness before I got over taken and I glanced back at Twilight saying with a wry smirk "Back up and put up a barrier, I gotta get rid of some of this stuff before I go stupid or something." She blinked slightly confused but did as I said, putting herself between me and the others, a barrier of light surrounding them protectively. I crouched down, one hand on the floor my knees popping slightly. I had to force it out in such a way that I didn't overwhelm Twilight or put Riku in danger as he was particularly susceptible to the darkness. Their eyes widened as I closed my eyes darkness coming off of me in waves, some of it clinging to me like flames before their vision went black for a brief moment as a large wave came off of me. I sighed, my breathing heavy for a moment as I regained control of myself, shaking off the weariness that had taken hold for a brief moment.

I looked up into the concerned eyes of both Twilight and Sora and gave them a reassuring smile as I straightened up, stretching my arms above my head, Sora asking "What was that all about?"

I gave a small smirk as I explained, lowering my arms, "I've been taking in a lot more darkness than I'm used to and haven't had a chance to expel it yet, cause there haven't really been any chances to fight." I cracked my neck working out the kinks as I continued "It's sort of been affecting my mood, especially seeing as I had to use up a hell of a lot of light to return something to someone so I got all imbalanced and that shit." I heard a quiet sound of protest at the swears and I glanced over at Kairi with a raised eyebrow stating matter of factly "Get used to it kid, you travel with me you're gonna hear a whole range of swears."

Twilight grinned and held up a finger saying cheerily "Though you have been holding back. Really! You haven't been dropping F-bombs left and right when I expected you too."

I rolled my eyes saying drily "Thanks, Twi." She grinned and started forward again, Sora lingering for a moment watching me with worried eyes. I gave him a small soft smile and ruffled his hair fondly, I seemed to be doing that a lot lately, saying "No worries Sora, I won't go and disappear on you again. Promise." His worry vanished and he nodded with a giant, face splitting grin that near about hurt to look at it was so bright. I rolled my eyes and shook my head but there was an amused smile that lingered on my face. I chuckled and walked off, heading in the same direction that Twilight had gone.

Riku watched me as I walked away, curious. He had never encountered someone like me before. So close to the darkness but not consumed by it, I knew my limits and how much should be present in my system. If nothing else I was an intriguing mystery to him, he didn't know if he could trust me or not yet. Twilight was a different story she was just one of those people that others naturally trusted and being so close to the light reassured Riku that she wouldn't do anything to hurt Sora. He glanced down at Kairi unable to read the expression on her face as she watched me as well; Riku was getting sibling vibes between me and Sora but he wasn't sure how Kairi was reading the relationship between the two of us. He patted Kairi's shoulder causing the girl to look up at him before she nodded and headed forward as well. A few minutes later and he blinked in surprise, raising an eyebrow at the scene before him.

Both Twilight and I were glaring at the blue haired man before us, my arms were crossed and I was swearing up a storm. Saix's frown getting deeper by the second as I continued to throw out the swears and insults, Sora staring at my back wide eyed having never heard me really let go before. Kairi had covered her mouth in shock at the language and Twilight while far more used to it had even raised an eyebrow, taking mental notes at which insults she could use…after cleaning them up of course. I happen to be very clever when using four lettered words, plus I was also throwing out the occasional Monty Python reference that went straight over everyone else's head other than Twilight's, who was trying very hard not to laugh whenever one came up. "Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!"

I guess he had had enough as he brought out his claymore sending a wave at us knocking us back. Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Twilight rushed forward as soon as they could. I had knocked over Riku and Kairi and was helping them back up to their feet when the barrier sprang up separating us from the others. Riku nodded down at me, his eyes widening slightly in shock seeing the fear that my eyes held. I hated Saix with a passion but after that session that left so many scars on me it had installed a fear that I wanted to deny but couldn't, I could only cover it up with bravado. I tore my eyes away from his searching gaze and turned to the fight at hand, the conversation that normally went on happening behind the barrier instead of it going on beforehand. I slammed a fist against the barrier in frustration with myself.

* * *

Riku watched as I paced in front of the barrier muttering angrily to myself "What am I doing? What am I doing? What am I doing?" Sora and the others were getting pounded in there, not to say that Saix was winning but it was too even of a match for my taste, and I could barely look Saix in the eye without flinching because of flashbacks.

Kairi reached forward and grabbed onto my sleeve asking "What's wrong?"

I stiffened under her touch, frowning as I stared down at her before muttering "Memories. That completely suck balls." She flinched at the venom in my voice even though it wasn't directed at her; it was directed at myself. I shook her off and gave a frustrated yell and launched myself through the barrier that separated me and the fight.

Saix had knocked Sora down and was about to get smashed with a claymore when I literally football tackled Saix, shoulder braced and low knocking the man off his feet and onto the ground. I had to skid to a halt; twisting so that I wouldn't expose my back to him…I was pissed as hell and the closest I had been to losing it in almost over a decade. The Nobody growled, his eyes glowing yellow as he went berserk and I closed my eyes for a brief moment searching for something inside myself. A malicious, fight happy smirk appeared on my face and my eyes flashed opened. I had unleashed the street fighter in me that I had buried so long ago; I had always used the skills but it wasn't the same as it once had been before. Now there was an edge to my fighting, a rawity that polished skill or a berserk charge couldn't match. All those years of fighting the boys back home was finally going to pay off.

I sidestepped slightly allowing the claymore to bury itself into the ground next to me as I launched myself forward slamming my fist into Saix's face with a satisfying crunch as his nose broke under the steel knuckles of my gloves. Sora took the opening and pounded onto the man as he stumbled back from the blow. I twisted into a spin kick, slamming my heel into the man's side for a kidney shot straight into the waiting arms of Twilight, Donald, and Goofy who grabbed the opportunity for a little revenge against the man.

The only reason this fight turned around as quickly as it did was because I had had the element of surprise, I had caught him off guard. Now that he was back up and glaring at us things would not go as smoothly. The smirk was off my face and had been replaced by a neutral expression that I normally adopted during a serious fight, my eyes cold. Sora and Twilight glanced over at me, both of them smiling slightly as my sword appeared in my hand and my eyes narrowed on the man.

Adrenaline pumping and a sensation of freedom that made me feel light, this fight had brought out a side of me that I had trapped deep inside myself and I had forgotten just how much I _missed_ the rush of a good fight. Saix charged and we scattered, he was on his last legs Sora and the others had been doing a good job running him down but they had needed the small break that I had provided. I jumped back as Saix seemed to focus on me, the easy banter parting from my lips like it always did "Wow, guess you're really upset to be related to a hamster." The scarred man growled and lunged forward, I sidestepped again but was slightly off in my judgment as my left shoulder got nicked and started bleeding. I frowned and thrust my sword forward aiming for his eyes but he tilted his head allowing the blade to pass by him. I immediately switched directions and slammed down, the blade biting deep into his shoulder. He let out a howl of pain and backhanded me. I was tossed a few feet to the side but managed to land on my feet, albeit slightly unsteady as I tried to get the stars from dancing in my eyes and the room to stop spinning. Once the room remembered that it was supposed to be stable I absentmindedly thanked the room for stopping its silliness and took stock of the fight once again. Sora and the boys had forced Saix to back off of me for a moment and Twilight was charging a light spear carefully tracking Saix's movement with her blue eyes, a frown on her face. She needed an opening to launch the thing at Saix but Sora and the others were having a hard enough time getting the man to stay away from me, I could already feel the bruise on my face forming but I wasn't all that worried about it. I charged forward my sword disappearing once again, I gave a slight yell and slide tackled the Nobody. Looking back on it I would laugh as I hadn't tackled someone so often since the last time I had played football with the boys down my street. He grunted as he hit the floor and I skidded to a halt, laying full out on the floor slamming my bowie through his hand and into the floor. He let out a howl of pain and twisted, pulling the bowie out of his hand intent on using it to stab me but I had portalled away to stand next to Twilight. His eyes turned yellow again and he charged straight at me; my desired reaction happening right before my eyes. Twilight gave a hollow smirk as she launched the powerful light spear into his chest knocking him back. I gave a startled yelp and ducked as my blade flew over my head only to spin across the floor with a clang. I glanced back at it for a moment before turning to Saix as his Claymore dropped to the ground with a metallic thud. He turned around, holding onto his chest where the spear had pierced him, and limped towards the window that looked out at the shining Kingdom Hearts.

I felt no pity for this man, who had tortured me and scarred my back, as he reached up towards the glowing heart asking pathetically "Why…Kingdom Hearts…Where is my heart?"

He faded out of existence and I gave a curt nod and quietly growled at the spot he had stood "Go to hell." Twilight watched me for a moment before throwing her arms around me comfortingly. I glanced over at her and relaxed, anger and fear melting away, fading into the quiet darkness along with the Nobody that had caused the emotions.

I glanced over at Sora, all tension gone and the friend he had become so attached to returned with the easy smirk that was on my face, the boy looked between me and Riku saying "I don't get it. Why's everybody been calling me Roxas?"

Riku glanced down at him for a moment before answering the boy honestly "Because, Sora. Roxas is your Nobody."

Sadness, confusion, and surprise all were fighting for dominance over Sora's face as he asked "My…Nobody?" Confusion and surprise kicked sadness out as he exclaimed "My…Nobody?! But that's crazy; I never turned into a Heart…Oh, right."

I chuckled as I muttered "Ding, ding, ding, this is your memory, leave a message and if it actually matters I'll get back to you."

Twilight snorted as Kairi confirmed it for the boy "It was when you came to rescue me, remember?"

Riku nodded and continued "Xemnas was the one who found Roxas. He could use the Keyblade because he was your Nobody." Riku crossed his arms seriously as he continued his explanation "That's why Xemnas brought him into the Organization…But Roxas betrayed them. After that I fought him because I thought it would help you wake up. I lost, but the next time we met I made sure I was the stronger one. Maybe I didn't need to fight him after all. I think he left the Organization because…he really wanted to meet you."

Twilight leaned over and whispered "That and there was the small case about the fake replicas that were being made of the kid and it sort of pissed him off but other than those that…" I covered my mouth to hold back the laughter, in the somber mood everyone seemed to be in at the moment it just wasn't the time for it.

Sora looked down at the floor muttering "Roxas…I wish I could meet him, too."

I slapped a hand to my forehead muttering "He fought the kid and still doesn't remember it. Sheesh." Twilight rolled her eyes as Riku walked up to the smaller teen and pointed at his heart, Sora and Riku having a silent conversation.

I rolled my eyes and walked up behind Sora draping my arms over his shoulders from where I was standing behind him and rested my chin on his head saying "You've had this conversation multiple times already. Woulda thought you'd remember that we're all connected." I let go of the kid and ruffled his hair once again with an easy grin that brought a smile to his face before he frowned in mock hurt as I shook a finger in his face saying "C'mon I knew Roxas for a short time and even I figured out that he was your Nobody. You really should think about figuring out anagrams. R-O-X-A-S. Take out the X and reshuffle the letters and you'll end up with Sora." I straightened up and turned my attention over to Twilight saying "The parents who named their kid Even were mean. Really that was cruel and unusual punishment for the guy. And who would even think about naming their kid Ienzo?"

Twilight shrugged with smirk, both of us knowing our conversation was going over the heads of everyone here, as she answered "The parents of geniuses I guess. Besides I think it's cute."

I chuckled and looked back at Sora as he stared at me confused and I shook my head with a small smile saying "Don't worry about it, those guys you'll never have to worry about…ever. Unless they make some sort of weird comeback but I doubt that'll happen. Then again…who the _hell_ knows what'll happen."

Riku shook his head and rolled his eyes before turning around saying "All right. Let's go." We followed the transformed teen back to the Proof of Existence, Twilight casting her illusion over it once again, before heading on up to the Naught's Approach.

We heard the voices before anything else and I jumped into a jog as Sora took off running up the slope with us following the boy quickly as he yelled "Your Majesty!"

We blinked at the old blond man who was holding onto the shaking machine as he turned to the boy saying "Sora, the rest is up to you…And Roxas… I doubt you can hear me…but I am sorry." I tilted my head curiously as Diz…Ansem the Wise turned to me saying "Girl, you entering my Twilight Town and befriending Roxas…" He shook his head before continuing "…I wonder if that was what started the destruction of my plans."

I shrugged and he looked down at the machine that was shaking violently under his hands Mickey jumping forward exclaiming "Ansem!"

The blonde man looked over at his friend and shook his head saying solemnly "My heart is telling me what I must do. Please allow me to do what it says!"

The small mouse jumped forward with a "No!" Riku and Twilight grabbed onto his arms causing the small mouse to look between them desperately exclaiming "Riku! Twilight!"

Riku shook his head gently explaining "His heart's decided. We can't change that."

I twitched as I felt the portal before it appeared and glanced over as Xemnas appeared out of the darkness saying "I was wondering who would dare interfere with my Kingdom Hearts. And look…here you all are. How convenient for me. Ansem the Wise… you look pathetic."

Ansem was still focusing on his machine and glanced over his shoulder at his former apprentice saying "Have your laugh. I deserve as much for failing to see you for the fool you are."

Xemnas, coughmansexcough, retorted a bare hint of annoyance in his voice, "Students do take after their teachers. Only a fool would be your apprentice. After all, none of this would have happened without you. YOU are the source of all Heartless. It was your research that inspired me to go further than you ever dared."

I rolled my eyes at Xemnas's blatant theatrics as Ansem stated "I admit…my disregard brought chaos to more worlds than one. But what were YOU seeking? You erased me from the world, only to take my name and continue research better left forgotten…Is this the answer you've been looking for?"

Xemnas smirked "All that and more. I'm carrying on what you yourself began, and I'm creating a brand new world, one heart at a time. I thought you'd praise me, but all you ever do is hold me back. I understand, though. Unlike me, you have a heart. And you're powerless to control it. Consumed, by the jealousy you feel toward the student who surpassed you."

I snorted and leaned over to Twilight muttering "Ego, much?"

Twilight chuckled saying "Well it is Xemnas."

"True."

Ansem sighed and said wearily "Xehanort. Foolish apprentice of a foolish man. You have surpassed nothing…only proved how little we both know. We may profess to know the heart, but its essence is beyond our reach. We're both ignorant…as oblivious as when we began. I'm afraid any world you try to create… Any world of yours…would be an empire of ignorance. That is why you and your creation are destined to fall!" He turned back to his machine as it gave a particularly dangerous clank, stating curtly "We've said enough!" The blonde man turned to the transformed teen saying "Riku, you know what to do!" The teen gave a small nod as Ansem turned to the mouse saying "King Mickey, my friend, forgive me! Farewell!" Sora and the boys tried to run forward but were blocked by Riku, Twilight, and I. I had grabbed onto the back of Sora's shirt, Twilight had snagged Donald and literally picked him up, while Riku blocked Goofy. I flinched at the explosion and closed my eyes already feeling the light sweeping towards us. I hissed in pain before it finally died down, almost everyone was on the ground the only exception was Twilight who was currently hovering over me anxiously. I pushed myself up with a slight grunt and blinked over at Riku who had changed back into the silver haired boy that he had once been. I stepped forward towards the face down teen and placed a hand on his shoulder, reassured by the steady up and down of his breathing. I glanced back at Sora as he rushed forward with a cry before dropping to his knees in front of him. I shook his shoulder and backed off a couple of steps as Riku pushed himself up turning his blindfolded gaze towards us. I don't think he had realized that he had changed back yet because the surprised, happy exclamations sent a surprised expression over his face before he turned to the king seeking any kind of explanation of what just happened.

The little mouse with a big grin stating "Ansem did say 'anything could happen'…"

I pushed myself to my feet and offered Riku a hand, which he tilted his head at curiously for a moment causing me to grin and tease "It's not gonna bite you Riku, it's just a hand."

The silver haired teen chuckled and took it allowing me to pull him up, Sora peering around me asking "Riku, you gonna take that off?"

The teen hadn't even noticed that he still had the blindfold on and gave a small "Oh…" before reaching up and pulling it off, blinking a couple of times as his eyes got readjusted to the light.

I grinned, I had always liked the color of Riku's eyes having a blindfold to cover them seemed wrong to me, Sora curious asked "What was that?"

Mickey stepped up, the three of us turning to him as he explained "His eyes couldn't lie."

Sora arched an eyebrow confused asking "Lie? And just who were you trying to fool? Huh? Huhhh?"

I rolled my eyes at Sora's childishness but couldn't help the small smile that formed on my face because of it as Riku answered "Myself."

Sora sobered up at that answer and straightened up breathing "Riku…" He propped his hands on his hips and leaned forward once again demanding gently "C'mon, man! Why did you try to do so much on your own?" Sora ran over to the others in the group as I shook my head at him, amused, as he spun around saying "You got friends…like us!"

We both watched as they all gave reassuring nods the boy glancing over at me as I sighed and said with an amused smirk "Saps, the whole lot of 'em, but…they'll stick to you like glue. No matter what happens." I patted his shoulder lightly with a grin and joined the others over where they were standing, joining the line of friends.

Riku felt a small smirk twitch onto his mouth and he walked forward asking somberly "Have you forgotten? I'll tell you why." Riku turned away slightly, laughter in his voice as he said "'Cause I'm not a total sap like you."

I burst out laughing at the indignant look that spread across Sora's face, waving a hand over at Riku I managed to gasp out "I think, ha-ha, we'll get along just fine."

Riku chuckled as Sora leaned forward demanding lightly "Say that again."

An odd noise stopped all laughter and teasing and the group looked up at the damaged Kingdom Hearts Donald voicing the thought that we all had "Uhhhh-oh!"

We rushed over to the ledge and looked down at the swarms of Heartless everywhere, Twilight turning towards me and asking "Can't you do something about them?"

My eyes narrowed slightly and I shook my head with a frown saying "Too many all at once."

Twilight frowned and nodded her acceptance of my answer Sora asking "What should we do, Riku?"

Riku stared down at the swarm saying resolutely "We must defeat Xemnas. He's the Organization's last survivor."

Sora turned to him and nodded while Twilight and I glanced at each other with slightly sheepish looks that no one caught as Sora said "Right!"

Riku pulled off the Org, coat revealing the regular cloths that he had underneath saying "C'mon!"

* * *

We were making our way through the Ruin and Creation's Passage and I was beginning to get annoyed with all the Heartless that kept popping up, slowing everything down. I growled and pushed my way to the front, placing a hand on Riku's shoulder as he had gotten into a defensive stance and lightly shoved Sora out of the way with my other hand. I stepped in front of the group pausing for a brief moment as I stared the Heartless down. I raised my hands to about shoulder level, darkness racing over them before I slammed them down banishing the Heartless from the room barely feeling their wills straining against my own.

I started forward again as the others stared at my back as I muttered "Damn reincarnation of the evil hallway. Annoying Heartless that pop up everywhere, can't move two inches without more cropping up." Riku and Sora glanced at each other, Sora grinning and shrugging up at his taller friend before following me as I stopped at the top of the stairs, my eye twitching at the Heartless that were coming in through the windows.

Riku sighed and glanced at them muttering "There's gonna be no end to this."

Sora grinned and summoned his Keyblade once again exclaiming "Together we can stop 'em!"

Riku gave a small laugh, the two of them jumping as Pete and Maleficent appeared before them, the witch ordering "Be gone from here! Leave these creatures to us!"

Pete turned to the pale witch saying "But there's no way we can take 'em all!"

I didn't see it but I could _hear_ the eye roll in her voice as she explained indicating us, "I will be sending them after Xemnas. Or, perhaps, you would rather fight them yourself?"

Pete placed a hand on his chin as he thought about it before stating matter of factly "Frankly my dear, I'd rather…RUN!"

She waved a hand clearly irritated as she dismissed him "Off with you then!"

I chuckled and passed the big guy as I stopped next to her asking "Good help is so hard to find these days, right?" Maleficent looked down her nose at me for a moment before nodding curtly, most of her attention on the Heartless before her as I asked "You wanna a hand?"

Her eyes narrowed slightly as she stared down at me, if I hadn't come from a family where most of the guys were over six feet tall I might have been intimidated as she towered over me and sneered slightly saying "I do not wish for help from a traitor."

I gasped dramatically and placed a hand over my heart exclaiming "A traitor?" I let the theatrics go with a challenging smirk as I said "I was never on your side to begin with." I raised a hand and clenched a fist, about a third of the Heartless vanishing into the darkness as I turned away to rejoin the others stating over my shoulder to the witch "That's all the power I can spare for you guys."

Maleficent watched me for a moment before turning her attention on the others "Sora! 'Your Majesty'! Do not forget…when I've destroyed them all, this castle shall be mine!"

I chuckled slightly and shook my head as Pete said down to the king "Now lookie here. Opportunities like this don't come along every day, ya know." He rejoined Maleficent and the two of them got ready to fight the swarm of Heartless that was coming up the stairs.

A malicious smirk had formed on my lips as I turned to Twilight asking "You ready for this?" She grinned and nodded her head, my smirk growing wider as I commented "I might just be able to go through with some of my threats. Now if I could only get my hands on a rusty spoon."

Twilight raised an eyebrow at me asking "Why would you need a rusty spoon?"

I grinned innocently, an expression that always meant trouble whenever it was on my face, as I explained lightly "Well, there was that little threat of castration by rusty spoon." All of the boys, every single one of our male counterparts winced. I absentmindedly ran a thumb along the scar that crossed the side of my throat before vanishing beneath the collar of my cloths as it followed its way down my shoulder to follow my spine muttering "I got this one 'cause of that little threat."

Twilight laughed and shook her head muttering to herself "Oh, Ghost. Only you would have the gall to threaten _that_ to the leader of an evil Organization."

I raised an eyebrow and shook my head saying "No one knows how they'll react to a situation that they've never been in before. All I did was get pissed and let my mouth run…though I'll admit it was funny to see their reactions."

Slightly pale Sora hesitated for a brief moment before placing his hands on my shoulders and started pushing me forward saying "Let's get going then." I glanced back at him and nodded with a smirk, allowing him to go ahead of me first.

The final battle was just ahead.


	41. The Final Fight

Here we go again, sorry it took so long. I've been looking for a job and getting ready for my best friend's wedding.

Shout outs: kingdomdisney, OrionRedde, mauralucky7, BAYALE, The resident cat, SpringBorn, KhAndTwilightFan15, Jubilee, Roxas4Ever13, Takoni-Balm, and DividedReality.

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or its characters.

* * *

**Chapter 41: The Final Fight.**

We were headed up the stairs when we heard the melodramatic, semi-psychotic leader of the Organization bemoaning his heart in the sky "Ohh…my Kingdom Hearts…ruined. Now I'll have to start all over again." I sighed and propped a hand on my hip, leaning my weight on one leg as the silver haired Nobody turned around saying "Warriors of the Keyblade! Denizens of Minerva!"

'_Must mean me and Twilight for that one. Well it was called Minerva's Chaos.' _

I snapped my attention back to the man as he ordered us "Go forth, and bring me more hearts!"

The three keybladers' and Twilight's reaction was an instantaneous "No!"

Mine on the other hand was a "_Hell _No!"

Xemnas frowned down at us, his eyes skimming over the length of four blades, asking "Denizens of light, answer this: Why do you hate the darkness?"

Mickey lowered his weapon as he explained "Aw, we don't hate it. It's just kinda…scary."

I rolled my eyes saying "Thanks a lot guys. Really. Feeling the love here. I'm not that scary."

There was an instantaneous and simultaneous response of, "Yes, you are." from Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Twilight. My jaw dropped for a moment and I blinked before bursting out laughing, waving off any concern that Mickey had that he had offended me.

Relieved that he hadn't angered one of his allies, Mickey turned back to Xemnas continuing his explanation "But the world's made of light AND darkness. You can't have one without the other, 'cause darkness is half of everything. Sorta makes ya wonder why we're scared of the dark."

My mouth gave a small twitch as I answered the sad mouse, my eyes never straying away from the Nobody as I said "People aren't scared of the dark. People are scared of what's hidden inside of the darkness. It's the unknown that people are truly scared of." Riku glanced over at me and nodded his agreement, if I hadn't had said anything then he would've answered the King as he was the next most experienced person there with the darkness.

I raised an eyebrow at Xemnas, who for the leader of an evil Organization was oddly polite, "Then allow me another question. You accept darkness, yet choose to live in the light. So why is it that you loathe us who teeter on the edge of nothing?"

I glanced over at Twilight out of the corner of my eye as she leaned over to me asking drily "He's throwing out a lot of strong words isn't he?"

I made a face that clearly agreed with the girl as the man continued "We who were turned away by both light and dark… never given a choice?"

I had a feeling that Xemnas had directed that question at mostly Twilight and I but it was Riku who answered him "That's simple. It's because you mess up our worlds."

I held up a hand like I was coughing briefly as I muttered "That and if he wasn't such a jackass all the time…"

Twilight and Kairi were the only two who heard my comment and both of them had to try to keep from laughing as Xemnas said "That may be…However, what other choice might we have had?"

I rolled my eyes saying "Oh hell if I know. You blew any shot of doin' somethin' different a long time ago. Now could you possibly direct me towards a rusty spoon?"

Xemnas's face darkened swiftly as Sora sighed clearly annoyed with the man as he said "Just give it a rest! You're Nobodies! You don't even exist! You're not sad about anything!"

Both Twilight and I slapped a hand to our foreheads for a moment before I reached over and slapped Sora upside the head ordering "Don't be a bigot."

He stared at me confused for a moment before turning back to Xemnas as he gave his slow, obviously fake, laugh before he said "Very good. You don't miss a thing. I cannot feel…sorrow…No matter what misery befalls the worlds. No matter what you think, what you feel, or how you exist." He threw his hands up and light came up from the floor surrounding us. I blinked as the light faded and I allowed my eyes to adjust back to the dimness that was around us, deadpanning as I noticed that Sora had vanished…again. Kairi and Riku gasped and started to call out to their missing friend while Donald and Goofy gave somewhat exasperated sighs.

Kairi turned to Twilight and I demanding "Aren't you two worried about him at all?!"

I raised an eyebrow before stating simply "Not really."

At Kairi's shocked expression Twilight explained "He tends to vanish every once in a while. It's best to not worry about it too much. Sora always comes back, eventually."

Kairi stepped forward, her face flushed, worriedly demanding "And what if he doesn't?! What happens then?!"

I leaned against the railing watching her steadily as I answered "Then I kick the ass of whoever it was that made him disappear." Kairi shuddered slightly at the ice that my voice contained before staring at me in confusion as I had randomly started humming Boom De Yadda. She shook off the confusion and started to call out for Sora once again, the kid dropping out of the sky and landing with a thump on his face.

Twilight and I pointed at him stating simultaneously "Found him."

The others rushed over to the boy as he pushed himself up, I pushed myself off of the railing and strolled over with my hands in my pockets and rolled my eyes as Mickey exclaimed happily "You're okay!"

I watched as Sora's eyes flickered everywhere for a moment before he asked "Where's Xemnas?" The others looked around trying to spot the man before Sora, Riku, and Kairi followed mine and Twilight's pointing fingers up to Kingdom Hearts where he was floating in the middle of it.

They jerked in surprise as Xemnas started "Hear me, Kingdom Hearts! It seems we must begin anew."

I rolled my eyes commenting over to Twilight "Doesn't he ever give up?"

Twilight sighed as she answered with a forced cheeriness "Nope!"

I shook my head and heaved a sigh turning my attention back to the Nobody as he said "Ah, but know this: I will give to you as many hearts as it takes. Mark my words! You can no more be complete without me than I without you. Heed me, Kingdom Hearts! Lend me your power, so that we may be complete! The power to erase the fools that hinder us."

Mickey glared and yelled up to the man "Xemnas! No!"

"Hearts quivering with hatred…"

I glanced over at Sora as he exclaimed "Xemnas! Don't!"

"Hearts burning with rage…"

"You'll never win!" That one was Donald.

All this went unheeded as Xemnas continued "Hearts scarred by envy…That fool Ansem said the heart's true nature was beyond his understanding. But it's not beyond mine! Hearts are the source of all power!" My eyes narrowed slightly and I winced as light flared up from the giant glowing heart in the sky, though everyone flinched even if they weren't the ones in pain.

I let out a pained hiss and glanced over at Sora as he yelled up to the unoccupied spot where Xemnas had pulled a Houdini and called after him "Xemnas! You can't hide from us!"

We looked down at Mickey as he turned to us saying "We're not gonna let him get away now!"

I rolled my eyes at the King's slightly more than obvious statement before we all turned to the door that appeared floating in the sky, Kairi pointing at it and exclaiming "Look at that!"

We headed towards it, confused Goofy asked "What's goin' on?"

Mickey stared up at the door murmuring "Kingdom Hearts…"

Riku frowned before he glanced at all of us encouraging "Let's go. Xemnas must be inside."

Twilight and I glanced at each other and grinned, tasting the challenge as Mickey explained his thoughts as he stared at the door "The worlds gave us this doorway. They want us to be the guardians of their destiny!"

Sora nodded his agreement as Riku added on "Once we go through, there's no turning back. It's victory…or oblivion."

I grinned and slung an arm around each of the boys as I teased them "Isn't it always like that though?"

I released them as the two of them rolled their eyes, Riku ignoring me as he asked the brunette "So, Sora…are you ready?" I stepped back as Riku, Sora, and Mickey lined themselves up to unlock the immense floating door. The three of them brought their keyblades together, activating the power of light before raising the blades and shooting up the three pillars of light; the door opening in response to their call.

Once they were done they lowered their weapons, Sora growling out "Get ready, Xemnas! It all ends here!"

I chuckled and ruffled the boy's hair as I passed saying "To end this you have to walk through the door." Sora shook his head and straightened his spikes before jogging momentarily to catch up with me as I stepped up to the threshold, looking up at the door my eyes narrowing for a moment before heading through. I glanced back slightly seeing the others coming up behind me; Sora glancing behind him to see what I was looking at before turning to me with a questioning look. I smirked and shrugged at him as we came to the other side of the door, my eyes shifting over the scene quickly assessing any potential ambush spots…which was pretty much the whole thing. If the white neon lights weren't disconcerting enough then the giant floating…thing with the multiple arms was.

We stopped and stared up at the thing, as Xemnas stared down at us, his voice amplified so we could hear it all the way over where we were as he said "So…it seems your hearts have led you to obliteration. Perhaps it doesn't pay to be too loyal to one's heart. I will have to be sure and remember that." He waved a hand at us and threw…it was fuckin' skyscraper he threw at us! I deadpanned and turned around getting out of the way, everyone having the same idea as I did, Kairi and Mickey unfortunately getting caught on the other side of the door as it closed.

Riku was having some flashback issues as he threw a hand up from where he was kneeling on the ground exclaiming "No!"

I placed a hand on his shoulder; giving him silent comfort that he wasn't alone as I glanced over at Twilight asking "Wasn't throwing a _skyscraper_ at us just a little over excessive?"

Twilight chuckled as she stated simply "Well, it is Xemnas."

"Good point."

I blinked as Sora whipped around, Keyblade in hand exclaiming "We can take him on our own!" Everyone's weapons appeared and a smirk spread across my face as I tapped the blade against my shoulder before charging forward with the others blinking in confusion as walls rose up to block our path only to be cut down by Sora. We rushed through my eyes narrowing as I tracked the giant thing, now that we were closer I could see that it was a mecha, as it swooped around and slammed onto the ground before us. We skidded to a stop as the platform we were standing on rose into the air, our eyes widening as buildings flew towards us. Sora jumped forward displaying his acrobatic abilities as Twilight and I shot the others down while he sliced them up. We grunted as one that we all missed slammed into the platform sending us flying onto one of the mecha's arms. I shook my head trying to clear up some of the fog, as the landing had been pretty hard, and blinked at the hand that was outstretched to me. Riku was apparently trying to return the favor and I grinned as I let him pull me up as Sora took care of Twilight, Goofy and Donald already standing.

My eyes narrowed and swore under my breath before yelling "Move!" Grabbing Riku and portalling the hell out of there, dodging the wave of energy that had rolled past us we landed on a different cylinder at the same time as the others did; both Riku and I letting out sighs of relief as we saw that they were okay. I let out a slow breath before grunting as I was knocked into the other cylinder, blinking as I saw the one that I had been on completely covered with Nobodies. I got up and looked around for another spot to get to as this one wasn't going to be sticking around, I could already feel the hum of the energy build up beneath my feet. I spotted where we needed to go and started that way, ignoring the yells from the others behind me, as I launched myself towards the other cylinder. I landed on my feet but I slid slightly and lost my balance, my hand slamming down onto the cylinder as I scrambled up towards the Energy Core to take it out. I paused in front of it, regaining my breath as I leaned forward my hands on my knees as I stared at the globe of light for a moment. I frowned and stretched a hand forward surrounding the globe with darkness before portalling it away to…who knows where; hopefully it didn't land on some poor random sap on some other world; if it landed on Xemnas that would be perfectly fine though. I gave a small sigh as the mecha shuddered and powered down, its energy source gone. I glanced back at the others as they made their way up to where I was, Sora clapping me on the shoulder before he continued up towards Xemnas. I rolled my eyes and followed him, ignoring Twilight's worried pestering.

I paused and glanced back at Riku as he asked "How'd you know that that was an important system?"

I grinned cheekily as I replied easily "Typically if it glows than it's important." Twilight laughed and I continued my way up, Riku rolling his eyes at my answer before he followed the two of us up. I finally made it to the top and rolled my eyes as my head poked over the edge and I saw Xemnas acting like a king, all high and mighty with armor on a throne. I grunted as I pushed myself up and over, glancing back before I reached down to help pull Twilight up as well.

We watched the transformed Xemnas for a moment with me raising an eyebrow as he looked over at us saying "Cursed fools!" We charged and managed to start laying into him only to have to back off and dodge the various lances that flew around him. I lifted an arm and twisted so I wouldn't get pinned by one as Twilight deflected a couple with a barrier that she held up before the two of us charged again, Sora and the others still dodging for a moment. I saw the sword lifting and I shoved Twilight out of the way, I put my arms up to block most of the blow but I still got thrown back, Sora charging at Xemnas from beneath me. I landed on my feet and skidded to a halt, Riku glanced over at me for a moment making sure I was alright before charging himself as Sora was thrown back like I was. I sighed and caught him before he fell, his back slamming into my chest. I grunted and steadied him, clapped him on the shoulder and dove back into the fight. I stopped next to Twilight as she put up a barrier blocking the flying cards. Once they were gone we both continued on my eyes narrowing slightly as I saw he was about to pull the move that knocked us all back.

I dropped to the floor letting the attack go above me; grinning as I popped back up to strike out at him taunting "Shall I go for that rusty spoon now?" Xemnas let out a howl of anger and summoned the lances once again but we were all too busy concentrating on him, he was on his last legs. I winced as the lances slammed down around me and Sora, one of them clipping my arm. I glanced at the lances for a brief moment as they dropped to the ground with metallic clangs before vanishing. I sighed and relaxed slightly before giving a surprised yelp as we were portalled back to the Alter of Naught, Xemnas crouched in front of us with a hand clutched to his chest.

We watched the Nobody cautiously as he knelt on the floor as he said "I need…more rage…I need more…hearts…"

Sora straightened up saying "Xemnas. There's more to a heart than just anger or hate. It's full of all kinds of feelings. Don't you remember?"

We waited as Xemnas caught his breath before he glared up at us hissing "Unfortunately…I don't." He portalled away and everyone relaxed, weapons being put away. Sora turned to the group with a small laugh which grew as the others joined in. Both Riku and I stood off to the side watching them, a faint smile playing on my lips, our eyes flicking over to Mickey as he said something but I tuned him out as Riku walked over to the side.

I tilted my head curious and followed the teen, sitting on the railing next to him facing the others so I could look up at Riku unimpeded asking "You okay?" He glanced down at me and nodded silently.

I raised an eyebrow and was about to say something when Sora walked over to us asking his childhood friend "You're coming back with us, right?"

I turned my attention to Riku, anger lacing his voice anger at himself, as he said "I had given in to the darkness."

Sora's eyes widened and he immediately exclaimed "Riku!"

Riku's eyes narrowed and he turned demanding "How'm I gonna face everyone?"

"Like this."

I burst out laughing, Riku soon joining me, as Sora made a silly face.

I wiped an imaginary tear away from my eye as I got control of myself saying "I think that was the best thing I've seen all day." I sprung to my feet as the ground trembled and there was a loud rumble.

We glanced around for a brief moment as the floor steadied itself before looking over at Mickey as he ran up to us yelling "Hurry!"

We nodded and I stepped back next to Twilight as Riku held up a hand saying "I'll open a path!"

He paused and slowly brought his hand back so he could stare at it confused before turning to Mickey as he explained "You don't belong in the dark realm anymore, Riku."

I raised an eyebrow as Donald turned asking "How do we get out of here, Your Majesty?" Mickey propped his hands on his hips with a thoughtful 'hmm'. Both Twilight and I sighed and turned around spotting the transparent Namine. Twilight grinned and gave a small wave as I winked towards the girl. The blonde teen in the white sundress smiled and turned summoning a portal herself. We glanced over at Sora and Kairi, smiling as we saw that they too had seen the girl.

Mickey and Donald spun around and ran towards the open path, Mickey running right through Namine as they stopped short of going through the actual portal; Donald asking "Who did this?"

Mickey shrugged and I rolled my eyes as he said "Welp, I'm not sure. But we'd better hurry and get through." Both Donald and Mickey turned around and were almost barreled into the portal by a barking Pluto who came out of nowhere…literally; I have no idea where the dog came from.

Pluto ran around the two a couple of times before charging into the portal with Goofy close behind calling "Wait for me!"

Mickey chased after his Captain of the Guard and Donald turned, stomping a foot and ordering "C'mon!" Twilight, Kairi, Sora, Riku, and I paused as Namine appeared before the portal.

Kairi gave a gentle smile as she thanked the girl "Thank you, Namine."

The blonde Nobody smiled and nodded with a simple "Sure."

She turned to Sora with a smile saying "See? We meet again, like we promised."

A very confused Sora became a very freaked out Sora as Roxas stepped out of him saying "You said we'd meet again, but when we did, we might not recognize each other."

Namine grinned as she chirped "I did, didn't I?"

Roxas smiled as he continued "But I knew you."

Namine nodded as she agreed "Mh-hm, it's…strange."

Roxas smiled as a light bulb went off over his head, the blonde explaining his thoughts "I think I understand. I see myself the way you remember me. And you see yourself the way I remember you."

Namine smiled as she said "I always thought Nobodies were doomed to fade back into the darkness…"

Roxas nodded as he said "Yeah, but you and I didn't. We got to meet our original selves."

The brightest grin I had seen on the girl came across Namine's face as she exclaimed happily "So, we can be together again!"

Roxas moved so that he was standing next to Namine and facing us, he nodded his agreement "Right." Turning his attention back to the group in front of him he continued "Anytime Sora and Kairi are together."

Kairi grinned as he told the two of them "We'll be together every day. Right, Sora?"

The boy jumped and I had to bite back a laugh as he agreed hastily "Uh…Yeah!"

The two translucent Nobodies smiled at the sight of their others, Roxas turning to me as Namine fused back with Kairi saying "Ghost…Thanks."

I blinked and tilted my head confused as I asked "For what?"

His expression softened as he explained "For never forgetting about me." I blinked in surprise before giving the Nobody a soft smile and a nod which he returned before he turned his attention to Sora amused calling "Look sharp!" Sora jumped and turned to the blonde, the two of them glowing a soft white light for a brief moment, Roxas vanishing into Sora. My eyes softened slightly, somewhat sad that Roxas was gone even though he wasn't truly gone.

I chuckled as Riku walked up teasing Sora, who was rapidly checking to make sure he was still himself, "Don't worry. You're all still you." I shook my head and stepped into the portal, Twilight slinging an arm around Kairi as they too stepped into it.

The younger girl shot Twilight a surprised look before turning around with a smile calling back to the two boys who were lingering "Hey, let's go home!" They started to come and the three of us walked further into the portal, the thing closing up behind us. Kairi jumped forward, stretching out a hand and calling to the running boys "Sora! Riku!" She stared at the spot where the portal had been, now that we were back in the pathway.

A small frown formed on my face as I said quietly "Sora. Riku. Good luck."


	42. A Double Meteor Shower

****Well, here's another chapter. It's a bit of a short one but I wanted to get it out before NaNoWriMo started which as of typing this is in about four hours. This is not the end, I believe there's one more chapter to wrap things up and then an epilogue...unless I stick that at the end of the next chapter we'll see how that goes.

Also, I know I got a couple of questions of why Ghost and Twi, didn't join the boys in the final battle. Well, I always felt that it was the boys time to shine. So that's why I left them to it.

Shout outs: BAYALE, SpringBorn, KuroNeko513, kingdomdisney, Jubilee, and KhAndTwilightFan15.

Disclaimer: KH is not mine.

* * *

**Chapter 42: A Double Meteor Shower**

I jerked back slightly as my personal bubble was suddenly popped by a distraught, demanding young teen. I stepped back as Kairi demanded "Open up a portal! We've got to go back and get them!" I stared at the girl in front of me for a moment, unsure as how to actually handle her. I wasn't worried, much…ok I was actually really worried but there was nothing that we could actually do about it; this was Sora's and Riku's fight.

"Kairi…"

She cut me off, I guess I had waited too long to answer, "How can you be so cold?!" I flinched and my eyes widened in shock and surprise, even Twilight hissed in a gasp.

My jaw clenched slightly before I shook my head, trying to clear it of the frustration that was trying to bubble over and said through clenched teeth "If you would let me get two words in I might be able to explain some stuff to you."

Kairi blinked and glanced over at Twilight who had placed a hand on her shoulder saying "We get that you're worried about Sora and Riku, which is the only reason that you're getting away with saying that, but you have to understand that this is their fight." Kairi stared at the girl in confusion. I sighed and propped a hand on a hip, shaking my head. She was a person of the light it was…understandable that she would have an aversion to me and not to Twilight but still, talk about hitting a low blow through sheer luck. I had been called a cold hearted bitch before by people, never friends thank God for that, but it wasn't the first time I had been accused of being cold. …Maybe I do come off as withdrawn and cold sometimes but still.

I watched as Twilight talked sense into Kairi explaining that there wasn't anything that we could do, when Kairi opened her mouth to protest once again I cut in saying "They still have a fight to win Kairi. To be frank we'd do nothing but get in their way right now. The best thing to do is to get you home so you're safe."

"But…"

"They're going to be _trusting_ _us_ to keep you safe Kairi." She opened her mouth to protest but I wasn't paying attention, my eyes had narrowed slightly concentrating on my other senses and that particular tingle in the back of my brain that was the darkness. My head jerked up and I stared at something that the others couldn't see. I glanced over at the others saying "We've been here too long. We need to get moving." Kairi ground her teeth in frustration and glared at me. I could understand why, she had just found her two friends only to be separated from them and if I had been in her position I would've been dragging my feet at every turn but this was ridiculous.

"And why should we be going?"

I raised an eyebrow at the younger girl and shrugged as I said "If you want to fight a Darkside fine but that's what's headed our way at the moment." I glanced over at Twilight seeing her pale skin lose what little color it did have and she grabbed onto Kairi's arm and started dragging her along down the Corridor to where they could get out of the Darkness. I watched them as they passed me, Twilight all the while trying to explain to the Princess of Heart what a Darkside was and how large of a threat they actually posed without causing a panic. I remained where I was for a moment my eyes narrowing in a particular direction before I turned on my heel and followed after the two of them…walking quickly. I don't get scared easily but the Darkside that was coming into view was easily one of the creepiest things I had seen. The game didn't do the Heartless justice but then again it is somewhat difficult to portray the sheer enormity of it as well as the overwhelming smell of decay that was coming from the heart shaped hole in its chest. It was true what Axel had said. If you remained in one spot for too long Darkness would overtake you. No matter how comfortable or how comforting the Darkness was for me I still sighed in relief when I exited the corridor and glanced around and spotted the others.

We had returned to Twilight Town and I could already tell that it was the real one as Kairi was being glomped by Olette and Pence while Hayner was hanging back trying to look cool though it was obvious to everyone that he wanted to join the group hug. I gave a small smile and shook my head amused with the antics of the group. I crouched down and relaxed, I was exhausted. I probably looked like shit too seeing as how the left side of my face was all black and blue from that backhand that I had gotten from Saix. My shoulder was cut up, though it had stopped bleeding a while ago, as was my arm but that had just about stopped bleeding. Both arms were bruised but all considering how the fights could have gone, I had come out alright. Twilight had a couple of bruises and scratches on her but nothing major; she had gotten really fast with her barriers. Donald, Goofy, Kairi and the King just looked tired but otherwise alright. So all in all we had done damn good…now we just needed to get to Destiny Islands to meet up with the boys and preferably quickly as I had no idea how long they were going to be stuck in the dark realm.

I pushed myself up with a sigh and stepped up next to Twilight who glanced over at me asking "We need to hurry don't we?"

I nodded with a slight frown saying "I always figured that they got dropped off at the Islands but we'll just have to make this work."

Twilight frowned slightly asking "Can you portal us there?"

I shook my head saying "I've got nothin' I'm practically tapped out right now."

Twilight nodded and turned back to the others as Mickey said "We should probably get goin'." Kairi turned to the small king and nodded. She hugged the group saying her goodbyes before Twilight and I grinned and waved at the small group who eagerly waved back to us as Donald transported us back to the gummi ship. The duck immediately went to the pilot's seat and set in a course for the Islands; which surprisingly were actually very close it would only take us an hour, or less depending on how Donald decided to drive, to get there.

* * *

"What do we do now?"

I glanced over at Kairi from where I was seated on the beach facing the ocean and answered the girl with a small gentle smile "Now we wait for them to come back." I laid back on the warm sand with my arms under my head and stared up in the general direction that Sora and Riku were literally going to fall from. I gave a relaxed sigh and said "You've got a nice place here."

Kairi blinked, surprised that I was actually being nice, and smiled before biting her lip saying "Sorry."

I blinked and rolled over so I could look up at her with a confused "Huh?"

She glanced off to the side as she explained "I was mean and rude when you really didn't need it."

I chuckled and waved the apology off as I said "We were all under a lot of stress so it's understandable. So no need for apologies." She glanced over at me clearly confused as to why I was being nice; a being of darkness being nice I guess it's a novel idea for the poor girl.

I rolled back over and grinned at Twilight who popped into my view with a cheerful "Hiya!"

I grinned and laughed responding in kind "Hey!" I tilted my head curiously asking "What were you up to?"

Her grin widened slightly as she answered "I was racing Donald and Goofy."

I raised an eyebrow asking "Really? Who won?"

Twilight sighed as she replied in mock disappointment "Goofy." I chuckled and turned my attention back to the sky, my grin widening as I spotted the two meteors that were hurtling towards the water. I pushed myself up to a standing position and brushed the sand off of my clothes, before brushing a strand of hair out of my eyes. Multiple cure spells that Twilight had cast during the trip, which had knocked me out cold during the flight, had healed the bruises on my face as well as the cuts on my shoulder and arm; the bruises on my arms though were still there. Twilight blinked before turning her attention to the sky and grinned at the twin lights that were falling.

I smiled up at the sky and breathed, "There they are." We both glanced over at Kairi as she gave a relieved sigh and watched as she rushed to the water's edge. Both Twilight and I turned our attention to the two boys that popped up out of the water and chuckled as Sora's hair 'sprang' back into its spiky position.

We were both grinning when Kairi yelled "Sora! Riku!" They turned to where the girl was yelling and spotted all three of us waving at them. Even from where we were on the beach we could still see Sora's grin before he started to swim to land, Riku following quickly. Sora got close enough to run, stumbled once before jogging forward. He didn't even get out of the water before Goofy and Donald tackleglomped him, Mickey running past the boy to get to Riku. Twilight and I stood on the beach watching the three of them with fond smiles before the two of us glanced at each other, grinned and tackled the boy in hugs…surprising the poor kid as he fell back into the water for a little bit. I hooked an arm around his neck and ruffled his hair fondly causing the kid to laugh. This boy…he really was like the little brother that I never had. We glanced over at Riku and Mickey as they watched the reunion while they had their own. I grinned at the two of them while Sora dug into his pocket for the lucky charm that Kairi had given him so long ago. I blinked as I saw Roxas and Namine in Sora and Kairi's places, my arm tightening on the boy's shoulders for a brief moment as he changed back in to the familiar brunette.

I let the kid go as he said "W-We're back."

I smiled as Kairi leaned down and extended a hand to him, relief and happiness in her voice as she said "You're home." He grinned and slapped his hand into her's with the lucky charm caught in between. She pulled him up and into a hug, the rest of us standing up.

I headed back up to the beach, grinning at Riku and placing a hand on his shoulder as I said "Glad you're okay." He smiled slightly and nodded.

I blinked as Kairi called over "Riku! Twilight! King Mickey! Ghost! C'mon we're gonna take pictures." I blinked and grinned, pulling the silver haired boy with me as we headed towards them. It was an old style camera, Polaroid, one of the ones that did instant pictures. Sora and Kairi were in the middle of the group. I had an arm slung around Sora and another around Twilight who was on my other side; Donald and Mickey were standing in front of us. Goofy was next to Kairi while Riku, the tallest of the group was standing behind Sora and I but he was in no way blocked by the two of us. Eight pictures later we broke apart, various conversations going around the small beach. The King, Goofy, and Donald had decided that it was time for them to go home; they had all been gone for far too long, Donald was going to be in some major trouble with Daisy. Even Twilight and I were probably going to be leaving fairly soon, as we wanted to meet up with Axel and Demyx. Sora glanced over at me and Twilight as we were having our own mini-conference about that very subject.

We both paused and glanced over at the boy as he walked up to us asking "You're gonna be leaving too, aren't you?"

Both Twilight and I blinked before giving sheepish grins as I answered "Yeah, we should be getting out of here eventually." My expression softened as I saw the sadness the seemed to seep from Sora, the people who stuck with him through thick and thin were leaving. I wrapped an arm around his shoulders and gave him a friendly squeeze saying "Hey, we'll see each other again."

He looked up at me as Twilight said "You have a tendency for getting into trouble."

I grinned saying "And I can pretty much guarantee that if there's trouble we'll be right in the middle of it." I ruffled his hair letting Twilight swoop in and hug the boy.

She pulled away as I said "You've said it yourself, Sora."

I poked his forehead lightly before tapping a finger against his chest over his heart as I continued "No matter what happens, even when we're apart we'll still be connected."

Twilight grinned as she said "No matter how long it is until we see each other again, we'll never forget each other." Sora's eyes widened slightly remembering that what Twilight had just said had been very similar to something that Leon had when they had separated over a year ago. Twilight grinned and I raised an eyebrow at the girl as she looked like she really wanted to ask something "Sora?" He turned to her in confusion as she continued "Can I have your autograph?!"

He tilted his head, extremely confused, and slowly answered "Oookay…?" He signed her picture still very confused but going with it, as it _was_ Twilight who was asking for it. I chuckled and shook my head at the girl who was, literally, dancing with happiness.

I returned my attention to Sora as he asked "How're you gonna leave? I, mean the King's gonna leave with the gummi…"

I knocked him on his forehead lightly with the back of my fist lightly saying "I've recovered enough energy to portal us out of here and the worlds haven't closed off yet, so don't worry about that." I gave him a soft, fond smile before glancing over his shoulder as Donald and Goofy came jogging up.

I tilted my head curious as the two of them as they stopped, Donald saying "We're gonna be leaving pretty soon." We nodded and Sora and Goofy hugged while I knelt down so that Donald wouldn't have to jump to give me a hug.

I glanced over at Twilight, who was currently getting a hug from Goofy, before releasing Donald, saying "Try to relax a little and have some fun." The duck grumbled but there was a smile on his bill as he moved over to Sora as I got swept up by Goofy.

I laughed as the bi-pedal dog set me back on the ground saying "Hy-uk, it's been a lot o'fun Ghost. We'll see ya again sometime."

I grinned and nodded responding "Yeah, 'till then." He let go and went jogging back to the gummi ship while I looked over at Sora who was just letting go of Donald, the duck following his long legged companion quickly. Twilight and I wrapped our arms around Sora's shoulders as he watched his long time companions head off, squeezing him comfortingly between the two of us. We watched as the gummi lifted off the ground and turn, the three of us waving at the three passengers that were waving at us from the windows, before it took off vanishing quickly with a distinct popping sound as it went into warp; headed for home.

Sora sniffed before glancing at the two of us asking "Are you two headed back to your world?"

We glanced at each other and shrugged and I answered "Who knows?"

Twilight grinned as she continued "I think we're just gonna wander around for a little while before we have to cross that bridge, besides there are some people we want to meet up with beforehand."

Sora shot the two of us questioning glances as I smirked and ruffled his hair fondly saying "Don't worry about us; we can handle any trouble that comes our way. You should know this by now." Sora snorted remembering that we always seemed to manage to find trouble one way or another; the three of us were all trouble magnets. I shoved my hands in my pockets as Twilight gave him one last hug. I summoned a portal behind me saying "See ya around, Sora." He gave a sad smile and nodded. I watched him for a moment before stepping forward and poking him in the forehead saying "This isn't forever Sora. We'll see you again, eventually. We just don't know how long it'll be." I pulled the kid into a hug whispering to him "You've become my kid brother. No matter what it takes I'm gonna look out for ya."

I pulled away with a small, sad, smile, letting Twilight get to him one last time as she said "You keep fighting the good fight and all that." I smirked and waved at him as Twilight stepped back and next to me.

The portal closed around us and I said "See ya later, Sora."


	43. Heading Towards the End

**So what do you know, the story hasn't died and I've got a treat for you that will be announced at the end of the Epilogue which will be put up as soon as this one is done. Now as for the reason this took as long as it did was mostly because the flashdrive that I had all of my chapters is in literal pieces. I had to re-write everything which wouldn't be that big of a deal except that for a while there my muse had died but it has returned with a vengeance.**

**Standard Disclaimer: I own nothing 'cept Ghost and Twilight. **

**Shout outs: KhAndTwilightFan15, SpringBorn, kingdomdisney, kenegi, The resident cat, BAYALE, Jubilee, Vanessa Rowes, Yuryu Ruasa, Ghost 5926, Mad Matt15, numa numa waffless, and dreamdrop5. **

* * *

**Chapter 43: Heading towards the end**

I stretched my arms above my head, glancing over at Twilight with a small smile asking "So where to?"

She glanced over at me with a shrug saying "I'd like to get back to Twilight Town; that place always felt like home to me."

I nodded and we started to move forward when we both turned as someone said "It's about time we found you two."

I smirked at Axel, Twilight grinning at Demyx, as I said "Please, you were worried and we both know it."

I blinked as Axel took two long, quick strides, closing the distance between us and wrapped his arms around me muttering "You know it, babe." I blinked and felt myself flush slightly before grinning and wrapping my arms around his slim frame, my forehead pressed against his chest. We both stiffened as a simultaneous chorus of "Aw"s coming from behind Axel. I rolled my eyes and we turned so that we could see the other couple, one of Axel's arms wrapped around my shoulders.

We were wearing identical expressions of raised eyebrows as Twilight asked Demyx "Don't they look cute together?" Demyx nodded in agreement a wide grin stretched across his face.

I rolled my eyes stating "Like the two of you should really talk." Twilight blinked, she had half way been expecting a complete and utter denial of the word cute but hadn't gotten it; it was a miracle and a half. I blinked as if just remembering something and turned to Axel with a small frown.

He looked down at me confused as I frowned and punched him in the shoulder hard enough to elicit a pained and annoyed "Ow!" from the red head.

I growled as I said "That's for pulling a suicide move on me you jerk." I reached up and grabbed his collar, pulling him down so that his face was level with mine as I said quietly "And this is for coming back." I captured his lips with my own and felt him smile into the kiss. Twilight's and Demyx's eyes grew wide and they turned away from us slightly so that they could talk. I pulled away with a small smile and raised an eyebrow as Axel's eyes twinkled with mischief. I rolled my eyes and shook my head turning to Twilight and Demyx asking "So what are you two planning to do?"

I barked out a laugh as Twilight responded drily "Other than avoiding your make out sessions. We decided we're gonna head to Twilight Town."

I smirked slightly as I nodded saying "Sounds like a plan for you two." Axel glanced down at me with a raised questioning eyebrow as if asking if I wanted to go there as well. I lifted a single shoulder in a half shrug saying "Twilight Town's not really my thing. I like the place. I really do but I've always been more of a Hollow Bastion girl myself."

Twilight snickered into the palm of her hand as she teasingly suggested "Or you could go to Port Royal. I'm sure Norington would love to see you again."

I rolled my eyes and muttered darkly "Yeah, he'd love to see me strung up by the neck til I'm dead."

Twilight chuckled as she remarked lightly "You really do have those movies memorized."

I chuckled and shrugged with a smirk before asking "You want me to tell the Committee you said hi?"

She shook her head as she answered "I'll tell them myself eventually." I nodded before blinking as she lunged forward and wrapped her arms around me in a hug. I relaxed after a moment and returned the hug gingerly, my arms were still sore from all the bruising they had taken. She pulled back with a grin saying "See ya later."

I smirked and nodded "Yeah, later." We watched as Demyx and Twilight headed off through their own portal, vanishing into what was most likely Twilight Town. My smirk vanished after a moment and I stared at where she had been a moment before, the worlds were disconnecting as we stood. It was a sobering thought.

I blinked and looked up at Axel as he laid a hand on my shoulder giving it a reassuring squeeze as he said "Let's go." I nodded with a small smile. I might not be going home, I might never see my friends or my family again but…at least I wouldn't be alone. I followed a step behind Axel as he opened a portal to Hollow Bastion, the two of us stepping into the world in the crystal cave thing on the edge of the empty valley where the Battle of a Thousand Heartless had occurred. I blinked in surprise as Axel swept me into a tight hug; I hadn't even noticed the few tears that had flowed from my eyes. He kissed the top of my head gently murmuring "Hey, it'll be alright. Don't cry."

I stiffened for a moment and wrapped my arms around his thin waist muttering "I'm not crying." My mouth twitched into a small smile as I heard the rumbling of a chuckle in his chest, his heartbeat steady and soothing.

I sighed and pulled away looking up at him with a raised eyebrow as he asked "What was it that made you so sad?" There were many things he had seen me as; this solemn had never been one of them.

I sighed and shook my head before starring over the empty valley as I answered "My friends. My family. My world. Who knows if I'll ever see it again and if I do get back there…what about you? What'll happen to us?"

I glanced at Axel as he stepped up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, his chin resting on top of my head as he said "I'll find you. Your darkness is like a beacon to me. If you get sucked away back to your world…I'll find you somehow. No matter how long it takes."

I snorted muttering "Now you're getting sappy."

I felt him shrug from behind me retorting "Everyone goes a little insane sometimes." I laughed and looked up at him to see him grinning proudly as he proclaimed "See I got you to laugh." I shook my head with a grin watching as he shed the Organization's long, black, leather coat.

He looked like he was gonna toss it when I protested "Hey! That thing's cool, you should keep it."

I blinked as he dropped the coat on my head saying "If you like it that much, you can keep it. The Organization's done I don't want any sort of memorabilia." I chuckled and dragged the coat off my head. He was still dressed in black but he was wearing a black form fitting shirt that looked like it had once been a T-shirt but the sleeves had been torn off. He gave a cocky smirk, as I took his look in, and asked "See something you like?"

I grinned as I teased "Most definitely." He blushed and I laughed. I could still get a blush out of him; it was just too much fun.

He rolled his eyes as he got control of himself and gestured to the world that we were on asking "Why do you like this place so much?"

I lifted a single shoulder in a half shrug saying "I'm just comfortable here, that's all." I settled down on one of the rocks with a sigh and tilted my head back slightly. I grinned as I said; mostly to myself, "This has been one hell of an adventure." Axel chuckled and settled down next to me blinking in surprise as I leaned against him comfortably.

Night fell all too soon. We had been reminiscing about the twist and turns that this trip had taken for us to get here. Sappy? Yes. But it was full of laughs so it was worth it. I smiled as Axel captured my lips in a kiss good night. I rested my head on his chest, curling comfortable into his side, his arms wrapped around me protectively. The two of us relaxed, for once not having to worry about being attacked continuously. Sleep was easy to fall into; it had been an obscenely long day for the both of us. Comforted by the continuous warmth that Axel gave off I drifted into a dreamless state, feeling Axel pull his old Organization coat over me to use as a blanket.

I woke to the sunrise, warm and content. I smiled and pushed myself up so that I was sitting. Feeling the pull on my waist I twisted so that I could look down at Axel, no at Lea as he slept. A hand reaching forward and cupping his cheek, my thumb running lightly over one of the fading tattoos under his eyes and I smiled, a little sad but I knew I would live, I would survive. Life was an adventure.

I was going to make it a good one.

* * *

**Darkness Report 1**

Six months! That was all it took for Sora to get into his next batch of trouble. Honestly that boy. Yen Sid sent a message to meet him in his tower and hopefully I'll be able to get some 'answers' about what's going on. This next adventure's going to be an interesting one as I'm going into it blind but what's the fun of knowing everything that's going to happen? Either way, my troublesome kid brother is probably in need of my help and come hell or high water I'll look after him.

I discovered how it was that Minerva was able to not cause a fuss back in my world though. It seems that we were simply switched with our counterparts from here. Cid found the records and everything. I sent a particularly scathing message to the disembodied voice but things were explained. Lea…Axel, still haven't entirely decided what I want to call him yet not that he's been much help, and the others had to walk on eggshells for a couple of days with how irritable I had been with that little revelation though. I wasn't exactly happy with being replaced but at least I knew that my family and friends would be happy…and that was far more important than anything else.

I need to head off and find Lea before I set out for Yen Sid's. He's probably up at the castle; I think Leon was finally letting him into the computer room today. Hopefully he won't get into too much trouble.


	44. View on High

**Important Announcement at the end!**

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_When once again the worlds have entered into chaos_

_Emissaries of the great Minerva_

_Two shall come from a place distant from our own_

_Light and darkness shall spread afar_

_As shield, spear, and sword_

_Darkness shall be tempted by the shadows_

_To lose the steadfast heart_

_Temptation leading into betrayal and disaster_

_All shall be lost_

_Light shall find its courage to face darkness it has never known_

_Gaining in poise and valor_

_Balance shall be created in the eternal reaches of the universe_

_If one should be lost then doom shall befall upon the worlds_

_Hearts of valor and loyalty_

_Joined to the kingdom in the sky_

_Would create fearsome creatures of the darkness_

_All light replaced by ethereal midnight_

_Silent sacrifices offered to the dawn_

"Time has been restored, My Lady."

"Thank you, Destiny. Has it been synched?"

"It is off by a year or so but otherwise yes, my Lady."

"Thank you for all of you work, Destiny." The ethereal female being sighed as she passed a glowing hand over the words; annoyed with the simple translation error that had appeared on the pages. They had named her Keepers, Users. They were no mere wielders of their respective elements. They were the linchpins that kept the Universes going. They were the elements themselves in human forms. The warrior goddess of death and oceans, patron god of Gaia, Minerva glared at the cracks that had formed at the bases of the mortal realms, shooting an annoyed look at her sibling, Cosmos. It was _her_ war that had caused the cracks to appear and it had taken far longer to restore time than had been anticipated and it wasn't even a permanent measure yet. There were still weak points and while Minerva was unsure of how long it would be, time would splinter once again. The Goddess of Harmony simply did not understand Darkness, which was one of the many reasons that she had declared war on it. Darkness was not evil, just as Light was not good. The elements simply were. They were the exact opposites of each other but neither could exist without the other. Minerva frowned down at the book that had catalogued her Keepers' journey. They had done well trying to keep their influence to a minimum but…they had changed things and would have to eventually deal with those consequences. Still, with everything they had known going in they could have utterly destroyed the worlds. She could not say that she was not all that surprised about who they had saved. Light was playful, even if harsh and would be attracted to the sparkling of the oceans. Darkness in its ever calm would gravitate towards chaotic fire like a moth, a creator of shadows.

They reflected each other.

Light wishing to explore the depths that it could never reach within the oceans, while the ocean always tempted it to come further in. Darkness always concealing itself waiting for some brave soul to plunge into those depths with a fire that could light the way. Minerva's eyes softened she should have seen this coming but had not and Darkness had taken such a blow. It had wavered after that situation and could use the time that would pass between the worlds to recover but things were stirring within the realms that it was residing in and it was only a hope that Darkness would be able to steel itself in time.

"My apologies Sister, I had not intended this war to effect so much." Minerva glanced back at the serene voice. She knew that the situation had bothered Cosmos but there was nothing that either one of them could do about it now. Minerva was working damage control. The expression that formed on Minerva's face, on someone less lady-like, would have been constituted as a scowl.

"Finish your war quickly. I would not wish to have to send my Keepers to take control of the situation." Cosmos looked down at her folded hands before looking back at the board, which showed her warriors, holding most of her power and being.

"I pray that it will not take that many cycles." Minerva restrained a snort. Harmony was not meant for the chaos of warfare. She was too soft, too predictable.

"My Lady? I have determined the most detrimental points." Minerva gave a small sigh and turned to Destiny, already knowing which worlds needed the most work. "Are you sure that it is wise to send them there. The time stream was the most effected and they were supposed to have encountered some of the major players already." Minerva simply turned headed towards the door that would link the portals together, walking through the impossibly long hallways with the innumerable doors.

"Things are as they are meant to be, no matter how confusing it may be to the Keepers." Time may have nearly been restored but the worlds themselves, they were not yet in their proper places and that could only be done on the mortal plain by the Children of the Keys.

"Understood, My Lady." Minerva stopped before one door her finger tips lightly brushing against the cracks feeling the power and turmoil that leaked through them. There were some worlds that could heal the cracks on their own. There were some worlds that would simply adapt to the changes wrought by the cracks. Other worlds needed the Keepers to bring them back together. Those worlds would either burn like suns bathed in harsh Light that would turn them to dust or they would be consumed by the Dark plunged into an eternal hell. So many worlds, so many problems, too few Keepers, far too few in recent years had heard the call. The charge was a heavy one and with the disconnection of the worlds having become so deep over time it was difficult to place the Keepers where they were most needed. Those that did hear the call struggled to always maintain themselves and not be consumed by power. Darkness was already instinctively trying to compensate, to keep those that she could from falling into the abyss that she knew (or would soon know) all too well, but was stretching herself thin, trying to take over territory that should not have been her concern. That was darkness though; tendrils would always reach out searching for new places to go. The door the Goddess stood at, the carvings of the howling wolf and the falling star, were cracked and darkness was leaking through. There had already been so much darkness in this world. The Keepers were needed before it descended even further into madness. Minerva pushed the door open and stepped through. It was time to prepare the world to summon her Keepers.

_Should the two remain steadfast and uncorrupted,_

_A new line of Keepers shall be born._

_The line that had been broken shall be renewed once more. _

_The turmoil that the worlds have endured shall end. _

_The Keepers shall remain, watching, remembering, _

_For it is their duty to restore, to protect, _

_They are The Keepers of Balance._

**_SEQUEL UP! BALANCE: NIGHTFALL _**


End file.
